US still wants to assist Lebanese army, official says

Sep 22, 2010, 16:28 GMT

Beirut - The United States is still committed to giving assistance to the Lebanese army, visiting US Under Secretary of State Defence for Policy Michele Flournoy said in Beirut on Wednesday.

Her statement comes in the wake of the US Congress blocking 100 million dollars of US aid for the Lebanese army in August, following an exchange of fire between its soldiers and the Israeli army on their shared border.

'We are working closely with members of the US Congress to resolve the concerns they have over military assistance to Lebanon,' Flournoy said, following talks with Premier Saad Hariri.

'We remain determined to work with the Lebanese government to extend its authority over all of Lebanon, and to advance political and economic reforms that benefit the people of Lebanon,' she said.

Flournoy said this commitment includes US support to the Lebanese army to help the Lebanese government exercise its sovereignty and authority over all of its territory.

She added that a sovereign and stable Lebanon is vital to the stability of the Middle East.

Washington announced in August that 100 million dollars of military aid destined for Beirut had been frozen by the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Congressman Howard Berman.

The decision came after clashes between the Lebanese and Israeli armies on August 3 in southern Lebanon, which killed two Lebanese troops and a journalist, as well as a senior Israeli officer.

The US, which lists the Lebanese Shiite Movement Hezbollah as a terrorist group, fears that arms heading to the Lebanese army might end up in the hands of the militant group and be used against Israel.

The US has spent more than 600 million dollars on military funding to Lebanon since the cessation of hostilities in 2006 between Israel and Lebanon.