Lebanon puts Tripoli and Beirut ports on the IMEC corridor; Aoun in Tripoli: weapons only in the army’s hands

Lebanon is putting two of its ports on the IMEC corridor, the India–Middle East–Europe Economic Corridor. The matter was discussed during the visit President Joseph Aoun made on Saturday, October 24 to Tripoli, the largest city of northern Lebanon, the first by a president of the country in over 15 years, according to the Presidency’s announcement.

At the port of Tripoli, board chairman Iskandar Badli briefed Aoun on the signing of the port’s accession, together with that of Beirut, to the “IMEC Corridor Ports Club” and on the obligations it brings in infrastructure, governance and digital transformation. Aoun called it “remarkable” that Lebanon joins with two ports, congratulated Public Works Minister Fayez Rasamni and spoke of a “great opportunity” for Tripoli and Beirut to emerge, “under the conditions the region is living in”, as gateways serving not only Lebanon but also neighbouring countries. He stressed, however, that accession requires successive steps to become a reality.

The port’s operations director, Ahmad Tamer, asked for the railway to be reopened, for which, he said, the only obstacle is funding, and proposed a complementary role with the Syrian ports instead of competition. Aoun toured the container terminal and the Tripoli Special Economic Zone, together with Economy Minister Amer Bisat, Interior Minister Ahmad al-Hajjar and Justice Minister Adel Nassar.

Weapons only in the army’s hands

In the political part of the visit, Aoun also raised the issue of weapons. In a speech at the Rashid Karami International Fair, the Lebanese president said the modern, strong and united state rests on two pillars: “the concentration of weapons in the hands of a single army” and decentralisation of development. He added that weakening the state “gives strength to none of its components” and that extending state authority over all Lebanese territory is a national responsibility that “does not tolerate partial or selective application”. The reference carries particular weight as Beirut is in talks with Israel mediated by CENTCOM and the question of Hezbollah’s arms remains open.

At the General Directorate of State Security, Aoun called on officials not to yield to pressure, while at the courthouse he stressed that security and justice go together. “The era of marginalisation and exclusion is over,” he told Tripoli’s residents. Attending the meeting at the Serail were the heads of General Security, Major General Hassan Shuqair, of the Internal Security Forces, Major General Raed Abdallah, and of State Security, Major General Edgar Lawandos. A day earlier, Aoun had condemned the attack on a church in Karak, Jordan, as a crime targeting coexistence among communities.

IMEC links India with Europe via the Gulf and the Eastern Mediterranean, and Greece is claiming a role as its European gateway, as the Greece–Cyprus–Israel trilateral showed. Aoun, who visited Athens and discussed the two countries’ strategic cooperation with Kyriakos Mitsotakis, wants the Lebanese ports inside that map.