Israel, extremism common threats to Iran, Lebanon: Zarif

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif says the Islamic Republic is ready to cooperate with Lebanon on ways to counter the Israeli regime and extremism as common threats to Tehran and Beirut in the region.

“The dangers which are threatening us are the danger of the Zionist regime [of Israel] and the danger of extremism,” Zarif told reporters after a meeting with the Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri in Beirut on Tuesday.

“We are ready to cooperate with all the Lebanese people and groups to counter these dangers,” he added.

He noted that in his meeting with Hariri, the sides discussed the latest developments in the Middle East, particularly relations between Tehran and Beirut after the election of Michel Aoun as the new Lebanese president.

The two sides also urged regional players to bridge the gaps on the political settlement of the existing crises in the region, the top Iranian diplomat said.

Zarif arrived in Beirut on Monday for a two-day visit, becoming the first foreign minister to meet with Lebanon’s newly-elected president. Following his arrival, he held talks with Aoun and Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil. Earlier on Tuesday, he met with Lebanon-based Iranian officials and their families as well as some Lebanon-based Palestinian groups. He also held a meeting with Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, the secretary general of the Lebanese resistance movement, Hezbollah.

Zarif’s visit to Beirut came just days after Lebanon's lawmakers elected former army commander, Michel Aoun, as president when they convened for their 46th attempt to choose a head of state.

After four rounds of voting on October 31, including two unexpected repeat votes, Aoun secured the presidency by winning the support of 83 out of 127 MPs, well above the absolute majority of 65 needed to win.

Lebanon had been without a head of state since 2014, when the term of President Michel Suleiman expired and the Lebanese parliament repeatedly failed to elect a president due to the lack of quorum.

Zarif’s meeting with Tammam Salam

In a meeting between the Iranian foreign minister and the Lebanese outgoing prime minister, Tammam Salam, in Beirut on Tuesday, the two sides exchanged views about the need to improve bilateral cooperation in different political, economic and cultural fields in the new political landscape in Lebanon.

Zarif told reporters after the meeting that he had held good talks with Salam and extended his congratulations to the Lebanese caretaker prime minister over the political achievement made by the country’s people and groups to elect Aoun as the new president after a 29-month presidential vacuum.

Iranian FM’s meeting with Lebanese parliament speaker

The Iranian foreign minister also sat down with the Lebanese parliament speaker, Nabih Berri, in Beirut on Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Zarif expressed hope that the Lebanese government would be established based on consensus and national unity in cooperation with various political groups.

“We also hope that regional woes will be solved at the earliest through cooperation among all countries in the region,” the Iranian foreign minister said.

“We believe that any success for Lebanon and the Lebanese people is a success for Iran,” he added.

The Iranian foreign minister paid two rounds of visits to Lebanon in January 2014 and August 2015.

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