Thursday, September 26, 2013

Remarks by U.S. Ambassador David Hale Following his Meeting with Prime Minister-Designate Tammam Salam

September 26, 2013
Media Notice
For Immediate Release
Good afternoon. I just completed a round of consultations today with the President of the Council of Deputies, with Caretaker President of the Council of Ministers, and just now with Prime Minister-designate Salam. The purpose of these consultations was to discuss how to follow up on the very good meetings that were held in New York: the meeting between our Presidents, President Obama and President Sleiman on Tuesday, and last night's meeting of the International Support Group that brought together leaders from around the world to demonstrate the political support that we all feel in the international community for Lebanon and specifically, support for the Lebanese Armed Forces for the efforts of the Lebanese to manage the effects of the consequences of the flow of refugees from Syria into this country and for Lebanon's economic development.
Words of support alone, of course, we know, are never enough, and so that is why we are discussing today how to follow up on these important meetings. It is also why in the last 48 hours between President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry, the United States, in fact, has announced over $112 million in assistance for Lebanon, and I think as you know that's $8.7 million for the Lebanese Armed Forces for their security work, but beyond that an additional $74 million to help address the humanitarian crisis related to the Syrian refugees, and just last night another $30 million for immediate direct assistance to help the local communities that are dealing with the impact of the refugee crisis.
So, I think it is very important to bear in mind, that as I said, over just the last 48 hours, the United States has announced an additional $112 million of support for Lebanon. That is a tangible commitment, and I think you can count on our continued support so long as Lebanon continues to address these crises in a responsible and practical way that we've seen it do so today. Thank you very much.