Lebanon: UN envoy holds talks with Egyptian leader over presidential stalemate

The United Nations envoy tasked with helping implement the September 2004 Security Council resolution that calls for free and fair presidential elections in Lebanon without interference from foreign influences and for the disbandment of all militia groups operating in the country has held talks in Cairo with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.

Terje Roed-Larsen, the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the Implementation of Resolution 1559, met yesterday with Mr. Mubarak, to whom he gave a letter from Ban Ki-moon about the situation in Lebanon, UN spokesperson Michele Montas told journalists today.

Mr. Roed-Larsen also met with Amr Moussa, the Secretary-General of the Arab League, to discuss the current impasse inside Lebanon over the country’s presidential election.

After his discussions with Mr. Mubarak, Mr. Roed-Larsen told the press in Cairo that Egypt and the UN share the same deep concerns about the stalemate in Lebanon.

Resolution 1559 also calls for the strict respect of Lebanon’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, unity and political independence under the exclusive authority of the Lebanese Government.