Senior U.S. Military Official Visits Lebanon

March 16, 2012 - Deputy Director of Political-Military Affairs for the Middle East at the Joint Chiefs of Staff Brigadier General Guy T. Cosentino visited Lebanon today and met with Lebanese Armed Forces Commander General Jean Kahwagi and other senior military officials.  This is Brigadier General Cosentino's first visit to Lebanon after having succeeded Brigadier General John W. Charlton who visited Lebanon in September 2011. In his meetings, Brigadier General Cosentino emphasized the strong and sustained military cooperation between the two countries as well as U.S. support for Lebanon's initiatives to implement its obligations under United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1559 and 1701. 
Brigadier General Cosentino renewed the United States' commitment to a stable, sovereign, and independent Lebanon.  He underscored the U.S. Military's support in strengthening the capacity of the Lebanese Armed Forces, recognizing its importance in serving as Lebanon's sole legitimate defense force to secure Lebanon's borders and defend the sovereignty and independence of the state.