Lebanese Strong Republic Bloc Calls for Ending Wars and Restoring State Sovereignty

The Strong Republic bloc, including its parliamentary and ministerial members along with the executive body of the Lebanese Forces party, convened an extraordinary meeting yesterday evening under the leadership of party head Samir Geagea. The meeting issued a statement outlining their positions.

Firstly, the attendees reaffirmed that the national objective pursued by Lebanese citizens since the end of the Lebanese civil war in 1990 is the establishment of an actual state in Lebanon governed by the constitution and legitimate institutions. This state alone should hold the monopoly on weapons, safeguard the borders, and exclusively control decisions related to war and peace. The Lebanese Forces have upheld this position since that time, with their leader, activists, and other sovereignty advocates paying heavy prices, including imprisonment, persecution, and marginalization, due to the insistence of de facto powers on keeping Lebanon outside the framework of a fully sovereign state. The meeting emphasized that this national goal remains unchanged regardless of evolving circumstances or shifting conditions, as the fundamental issue is restoring Lebanon to its natural status as a free, independent sovereign state rather than a battleground for external conflicts.

Secondly, the participants considered any agreement between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran as a matter concerning only those two countries. The ceasefire mentioned in such an agreement is general and pertains to the Middle East region, without practical implications for Lebanon, since the party engaged in combat within Lebanon is Israel, not the United States. Furthermore, the ceasefire agreement reached in early April, which was implemented in the Gulf region, was never applied in Lebanon. The main interest of Iran in addressing a ceasefire in Lebanon within the agreement is to provide verbal support to Hezbollah to continue fighting in pursuit of Iran’s objectives.

Moreover, the meeting stressed that what the Lebanese people require after all their suffering is not merely a ceasefire that maintains the status quo, in which Iran and Hezbollah constitute the core of the existing situation, but a complete end to the successive wars that have devastated and impoverished Lebanon. They stated that the time has come to resolve the issue by dismantling illegal military organizations, foremost among them Hezbollah.

Thirdly, the attendees affirmed their primary and final reliance on the Lebanese state and its constitutional institutions. They praised the historic decisions taken by the Lebanese government aimed at extending full state authority over all Lebanese territories. This includes decisions related to disarming Hezbollah issued on August 5 and 7, as well as decisions targeting the dismantling of Hezbollah’s military and security structures issued on March 2. The meeting emphasized the importance of implementing these decisions, especially upon entering a ceasefire phase. They also supported all political, diplomatic, and negotiation efforts undertaken by constitutional authorities to reinforce Lebanon’s sovereignty and restore the state’s full role.

Fourthly, the participants asserted that the faction which adopted the slogan of "resistance" is the same one that dragged Lebanon into cycles of wars and conflicts, provoking Israeli military interventions due to its insistence on maintaining illegal arms and controlling war and peace decisions outside constitutional institutions. This faction missed historic opportunities for Lebanese sovereignty following the Israeli withdrawal in 2000 and the Syrian army’s exit in 2005. Instead, it returned the country to repeated rounds of wars, destruction, and crises, starting with the July 2006 war and its heavy losses, continuing with the "Support Gaza" and "Support Tehran" wars, which caused unprecedented tragedies and damage to Lebanon and its people.

Fifthly, the meeting stressed that the Lebanese state currently enjoys, for the first time in many decades, a real opportunity to reclaim its full role. There is a president, a prime minister, and a majority in both the cabinet and parliament, supported by a cross-sectarian popular consensus, all united around the single goal of establishing an effective state and ending all forms of political and military duality. They warned that any attempt to obstruct or circumvent this path is doomed to fail, as the united popular will is far stronger than any factional or armed project.

Sixthly, the participants categorically rejected any attempt to link Lebanon’s future to the Iranian axis. They stated that Lebanon cannot be an appendage to others’ projects or a venue for settling external scores, but must be connected exclusively to its constitution, legitimate institutions, and supreme national interest.

Seventhly, the meeting renewed its full support for the negotiation process led by President Michel Aoun in coordination with Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, describing it as the sole path to ending wars in Lebanon and achieving an effective state that restores Lebanon’s Arab and international relations.

Eighthly, the participants viewed the ceasefire as an opportunity to complete the extension of state authority over all Lebanese territory and to confine arms to the state’s control. This should proceed alongside the implementation of Washington’s resolutions, which alone will lead to the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese lands, thereby establishing Lebanon’s sovereignty fully, definitively, and irreversibly.

Finally, the meeting affirmed that the foremost and ultimate demand of the Lebanese people is to permanently close the chapter of wars. The only way to achieve this is by ending all illegal situations that cause these wars, primarily Hezbollah’s military and security status, and removing the factors that have kept Lebanon for decades a battleground for regional conflicts. While a ceasefire is an urgent necessity to stop death and destruction, the greater national imperative remains the elimination of the causes that lead to the recurrence of wars. The clear and singular path to this goal is the establishment of a real and effective state that monopolizes weapons, decision-making, and sovereignty over its entire territory.