Lebanese President Michel Aoun affirmed Saturday Lebanon's adherence to its oil and water rights.

During a meeting with Arab foreign ministers in the Baabda Palace on the sidelines of the Arab Foreign Ministers Consultative Meeting, Aoun pointed out that “Despite Lebanon's difficult circumstances, the country is determined to find solutions to get out of its crises, while it adheres to its water, oil and gas resources."

The Lebanese President stressed that “Cooperation and solidarity between Arab countries are important in light of the crises, pressures, and transformations our countries are witnessing."

"The Palestinian issue is at the forefront of concerns, as well as the suffering of some Arab countries and their peoples from wars," affirmed Aoun.

The Lebanese President stressed that "There is no complacency in the war on terrorism and issues of asylum or displacement," indicating that "Lebanon is paying the heavy price as a result of Syrian displacement and Palestinian asylum."

“Lebanon is no longer able to bear the burden of the large numbers of refugees and displaced people on its land," he added.

رئيس الجمهورية استقبل المشاركين في الاجتماع التشاوري لوزراء الخارجية العرب: التعاون والتضامن بين الدول العربية مهم في ظل ما تشهد دولنا من أزمات وضغوط وتحولات، والقضية الفلسطينية في مقدمة الاهتمامات، وأيضا معاناة بعض الدول العربية وشعوبها من الحروب pic.twitter.com/g4UERUXZBe

— Lebanese Presidency (@LBpresidency) July 2, 2022

A Lebanese source had previously told Sputnik that Lebanon would present a number of files during the summit, the most prominent of which is the Syrian displacement file, which according to the source, has become a burden on Lebanon.

The meeting comes ten days before US President Joe Biden's visit to the Middle East.

Last March, the Secretary-General of the Arab League, Ahmad Aboul Gheit, announced that the Arab summit, hosted by Algeria, would take place on November 1-2 for the first time since 2019, as it was not held in 2020 and 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Arab states are required to unite efforts

In the same context, Aoun met with the Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra, where the Lebanese President considered that what makes the Arab summit that will be held in Algeria important, "is the size of the serious crises facing our world today and the major challenges, in addition to the targets that the Arab countries suffer from."

Aoun stressed that Arab states are required to unite efforts to confront these challenges, "starting with the central issue, which is the Palestinian cause and defending the rights of the Palestinian people, to the need to stop the wars afflicting many of our countries."

The Lebanese President said that "our region is witnessing the worst waves of asylum in recent history, and Lebanon is paying the heavy price as a result of Syrian displacement and Palestinian asylum."

It is noteworthy that the United Nations mentioned last year that 89% of Syrian refugees in Lebanon live below the poverty line, in comparison to 55% in 2019.

On his part, Aboul Gheit underlined that “The significance of the meeting in Beirut is that the Arab countries stand by Lebanon, its political leadership and its people, with the hope that this beautiful country and its long history will overcome the economic and political problems it suffers from.”