Interior Minister Raya al-Hassan said that the international community has stood with Lebanon in confronting crises and challenges, “in an effort to save it and help it.”
She added that Beirut has benefited from its good international relations with many donor countries, which boosted its presence before world conferences.
The minister’s comments came during a conference in Sweden, organized by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute and entitled, “From Crisis Response to Peace Building: Achieving Synergies.”
She said stressed that the international community has organized several conferences in support of Lebanon, beginning with the Friends of Lebanon conference in 1996, which was held in Washington following an Israeli offensive, and up to CEDRE, which was hosted by the French capital last year.
Al-Hassan emphasized that the Lebanese should draw important lessons from such conferences.
“When the country is receiving support, it should consider the importance and nature of such assistance in the long run rather than the short one, and take it seriously to ensure that it receives new assistance in the future,” she said.
While highlighting the importance of “ensuring the sustainability of the conditions and standards required by the international donor community,” the minister noted that it was “not enough to set conditions, but more importantly, that the recipient country be able to implement them, which necessitates that the conditions be realistic and achievable.”
She also underlined the need to “maximize the involvement of the private sector in order to strengthen the capacity to cope with crises.”
