Al-Shaibani discusses pending files in Beirut next week

Syrian  Foreign Minister  Asaad al-Shaibani will visit Lebanon this week, during which he will meet  with the three presidents and a number of Lebanese officials, Lebanese presidential sources said.

The sources indicated to Syria TV that the visit comes within the framework of the process of "reorganizing official relations between Damascus and Beirut, discussing border files, economic cooperation, and activating bilateral agreements."

During the visit, al-Shaibani will meet with President Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and Speaker of the House of Representatives Nabih Berri, the sources said, in a move aimed at expanding communication channels with various Lebanese forces and opening a new page in bilateral relations as part of efforts to strengthen official communication channels between the two countries.

According to the sources, the visit comes as a continuation of the positive initiative announced by President Ahmed al-Sharaa in his last interview, which aims to affirm Damascus's support for Lebanon and its support in emerging from its crises and consolidating an approach based on cooperation between the two countries away from the policies of the previous stage.

What did President Sharia say about Lebanon?

In his interview with Al-Mashhad TV a few days ago, President Al-Sharaa stressed that the new Syria refuses to return to the policies of trusteeship and interference in Lebanese affairs, stressing that Damascus does not seek any military role in Lebanon, but rather supports the path of peace, stability and dialogue between the various Lebanese components.

President Al-Shara touched on the statements attributed to US President Donald Trump regarding the possibility of Washington relying on Syria in the file of "Hezbollah" weapons, stressing that those statements were misinterpreted.

In response to a question about the possibility of Damascus becoming a platform for receiving Hezbollah's opponents, al-Shara stressed that Syria does not want to increase polarization inside Lebanon, noting that the new Syrian role is based on opening channels for dialogue and promoting cooperation, not creating axes.

 President Al-Shara stressed that priority should be given to common files and areas of economic cooperation, pointing out that Lebanon has long found itself between two difficult options: civil war or confrontation with Israel, calling for the search for a "third option" that allows stability and development.

At the end of the interview, Al-Sharaa addressed a message to the Lebanese, saying that Syria only wants the good for Lebanon and its people, and that Syria's choice is development, reconstruction and healing wounds, not entering into new wars and conflicts.

Syrian source denies the existence of military build-up on Lebanon's borders

On Thursday (June 25th),  media outlets reported the presence of military movements and the redeployment of Syrian forces in a number of border areas extending from the western countryside of Homs to Qalamoun and the countryside of Tartous, in conjunction with the transfer of weapons and military vehicles to sites adjacent to the Lebanese border.

On the same day, Syrian security sources confirmed the news, stressing that the situation on the ground was "normal and routine" and had not witnessed any exceptional changes.

The sources explained  that the deployment of the Syrian army in those areas falls within the usual tasks of controlling the border and combating smuggling, categorically denying what has been circulated about extensive movements of vehicles and tanks towards border villages such as Qusayr, Qalamoun and the countryside of Tartous.

There has been no official statement from the Syrian or Lebanese Defense Ministries.