President of the Republic Joseph Aoun said in his delivered address at the emergency Arab summit in Cairo:
"Your Excellency General Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt and President of the Summit,
Dear Brothers, Your Majesties, Your Royal Highnesses, Excellencies,
I am probably the last newly-elected President to join your Council.
Hence, I am not entitled to give lessons on Palestine, the subject of our summit ... and our constant commit.
Nevertheless, I come to you carrying under my cap more than forty years of military service in the best interests of my country and its people.
Thus, allow me to share a mere testimony of my life.
Firstly, Lebanon has taught me that the Palestinian cause is rightful.
It has taught me that making the right real always requires power.
It has taught me that the power of peoples’ struggles lies in the power of reason, of position. It is the power to persuade the world, to mobilize the public opinion, and to maintain the comprehensive balance of power…
It translates as well in the power of strength to stand up for what is right on grounds of necessity, legitimacy and viableopportunities.
Secondly, Lebanon has taught me that the Palestinian cause is a triad of Palestinian national right, Arab national right, and universal human right.
It has taught me that the more we manage to demonstrate the transcendental dimensions of the Palestinian cause, the more we will champion it and triumph with it.
Alternatively, the more we curtail and reduce it to a sectarian, partisan, communal or axial cause...
The more we condemn Palestine to be deeply mired in the quagmire of a struggle for power or influence...
The more we will lose it and will lose ground with it.
Dear brothers,
The wars in Lebanon have taught me that the Palestinian dimension of the Palestinian cause requires us to always standwith its people, both in principle and in practice.
That is, to second its people’s choices and decisions, to stand with its official authorities and legitimate representatives, to accept what its people stands for, and to reject what it turns down.
Let us shun away from going beyond the Palestinians, fromexploiting their suffering, or from ignoring their struggles.
The wars of others on Lebanon’s soil have taught me that the Arab dimension of the Palestine issue compels all of us to be strong, so that Palestine can be strong.
For when Beirut is occupied, when Damascus is destroyed, when Amman is threatened, when Baghdad is groaning, or when Sana'a is falling ...
No one shall claim that this could be in support for Palestine.
I believe the best way to support Palestine is by ensuring that our Arab countries are strong, drawing on the fundamentals of stability, prosperity, peace, openness, development, growth, vocation and typicality.
Just as Lebanon's full and stable sovereignty is fortified by full recovery in Syria and total independence in Palestine,
The same goes for each of our countries, in their relations and interaction with every Arab neighboring country and our entire Arab region.
Any ailing Arab neighboring country is an ailment for all of its neighbors, and vice versa.
In this very context, Lebanon has taught me, after decades of conflicts, crises, and problems, that any delusional contradiction or alleged conflict between our historical and accomplished national identities on one hand, and our single and inclusive Arab identity on the other, is simply invalid. Rather, they are complementary and cumulative.
For I take pride in being one hundred percent Lebanese and one hundred percent Arab; I also embrace both identities from a national and missionary standpoint.
For the Palestinian cause to be the epitome of a universal human right, we shall open our countries up to the entire world, rather than isolate them. We must befriend the world’s driving forces,and interact with global decision-making centers in a spirit of meaningful dialogue rather than alienating confrontation.
This is what Lebanon taught me about Palestine for decades. This is what I testify to before you today.
This is what I testify to, after having made a pledge to my people that I would restore Lebanon’s place and standing under the sun.
And here I am, among you, fulfilling the pledge. For first,Lebanon has returned to a legitimate authority track, which I have the honor to represent.
Second, Lebanon is now returning to its legitimate Arab fold, thanks to you, your testimony, and your constant and appreciated support.
Third, Lebanon is embracing once again, with you, the international legitimacy of the United Nations, which is indispensable and irreplaceable to protect and fortify itself, and to restore its full rights.
In my country, just as in Palestine, Israel continues to occupy lands, to launch daily aggressions, and to claim innocent lives every day, leaving people martyred or wounded, destroying properties, and causing rivers of blood and tears to flow. I bow before their suffering. I am proud to say that I hail from the same country as them.
There can be no peace without the liberation of the last inch of our homeland, whose borders are internationally recognized, documented, proven and demarcated.
There can be no peace without the formation of a PalestinianState.
There can be no peace without the restoration of the legitimate and full rights of the Palestinians.
This was our pledge as Arab states, since the Beirut Peace Initiative in 2002 up until the Riyadh Declaration last November.
This is neither an ideological stance nor a political alignment.
This is a factual depiction of the daily struggles internalized and experienced by every human being in our countries and societies.
Dear brothers,
Lebanon has suffered too much. However, it has drawn lessons from its ordeal.
It has learned not to be a battleground for other peoples' wars.
It has learned not to be a doorway or a hallway for foreign policies of influence. It has learned not to settle for occupation, tutelage, or hegemony.
It has learned not to allow some internal parties to seek foreign backing - albeit from friendly or brotherly states- in an attempt to bully their compatriots.
It has learned not to allow other internal parties to alienate or harm any friend or brother, in word or in deed.
Lebanon has learned that it shares existential interests with its Arab neighbors, as well as vital interests with the whole free world.
It has learned that its role in this region is to serve as a land of encounter rather than an arena of conflict.
Lebanon has learned that its raison d'être lies in safeguarding freedom, forging modernity, and creating joy.
The joy of living a free, dignified, sovereign, prosperous and blossoming life that is open to everything that embodies beauty, truth, goodness, justice, and living universal human values.
Mr. President,
In closing, allow me to thank you for the invitation and the hospitality.
Today, Lebanon returns to you and is looking forward to welcoming you all soon.
Until we meet in Lebanon, please accept our warm and brotherly greetings."
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