[Washington Institute for Near East Policy] David Schenker - Lebanese president Michel Suleiman met with President Bush at the White House and reportedly pressed for a continued U.S. commitment to military assistance. Since the election of the pro-West "March 14" coalition in 2005, the U.S. has provided nearly $400 million in foreign military financing to Beirut. While Washington continues to back Beirut, Hizbullah's recent political gains will likely prevent the administration from expanding either the quantity or quality of the military requests. Hizbullah now heads Lebanon's foreign ministry. If March 14 loses the spring 2009 parliamentary elections, and a Hizbullah-led coalition heads the new government, U.S. assistance would likely end altogether.
2008-10-06 01:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive