LOC17:35
14:35 GMT
By Omar Al-Halabi (with photos)
BEIRUT, Nov 12 (KUNA) -- Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Al-Hariri is to go on
an official visit to the Russian capital of Moscow on 15th and 16th of this
month, it has been announced here Friday.
Hariri's visit came at the invitation of his Russian counterpart Vladimir
Putin with the aim of discussing the development of bilateral ties and
conditions in the Middle East region.
A source from the Lebanese presidency spoke to KUNA on condition of
annonymity and said that Al-Hariri will discuss with Russian officials -- and
at their forefront President Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin
-- the ways of developing bilateral relations in various military, economic
and development fields as well as the Middle East peace process.
He also said that the discussion will tackle the topic of giving a number
of Russian Mi-24 military helicopters as a gift and sending lebanese officers
to train on them along with other Russian weapons that Lebanese army seeks
including tanks, artillery and ammunitions.
Lebanese Minister of Defense Elias Murr has recently said that military
talks which started with Russia since a year and half bore fruits, saying that
the handover of Russian helicopters to the Lebanese army will be carried out
before the end of this year.
At the economic level, the same source said that the visit will be an
opportunity for discussions on increasing the volume of trade exchange between
Lebanon and Russia along with offering facilities for business people in both
countries for establishing joint investment.
In the same vein, a high-profile diplomat from the Lebanese foreign
ministry who preferred to be annonymous told KUNA that "Lebanon hopes that
Russia will support it in its rightful issues and will put pressures on Israel
to withdraw from the occupied Lebanese territories and apply the UN resolution
1701."
Finally, the same diplomatic source said that the topic of international
tribunal will not be off the agenda of bilateral meetings, saying that
Al-Hariri will assert his country's adherence to the international tribunal on
Lebanon along with supporting its procedures to bring about justice. (end)
ah.aff
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