Moscow expects situation in Lebanon to be settled without external interference

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov and his Lebanese counterpart Ghassan Hasbani met in Moscow on Wednesday amid the unfolding political crisis in Lebanon after the resignation of Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri. Moscow stressed the need to resolve all urgent issues on the national agenda “by the Lebanese themselves, without outside interference, through dialogue, with account for the interests of all major political forces of that multi-confessional country,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said. Bogdanov, who is also the Russian president’s special representative for Middle East and African Affairs, expressed hope that Lebanon will preserve recent positive trends in its socio-political situation.