Biden in Lebanon says US aid depends on election

Washington will evaluate its assistance to Lebanon based on the policies of the new government to be formed after the June 7 parliamentary vote, United States Vice President Joe Biden said Friday in the highest level visit to the country in 25 years.

"The U.S. will evaluate the shape of its assistance program based on the policies of the new government," Biden told reporters after meeting President Michel Suleiman on his first visit to the Middle East since taking office.

The June 7 vote will put the current U.S.-backed majority in parliament against a Hezbollah-led coalition backed by Syria and Iran.

Analysts say Hezbollah and its allies stand a good chance of winning the vote.

Biden said his visit to Lebanon, the first by a U.S. vice president in nearly three decades, was not aimed at interfering in the country's internal politics.

"I did not come here to back any party," Biden said.

"I urge those who think about standing with the spoilers of peace not to miss this opportunity to walk away," he added however, in an apparent reference to supporters of Hezbollah, considered a terrorist organization by Washington.

"It's not an accident that the president (Barack Obama) asked me to come to Lebanon to personally demonstrate to you (that) our commitment to Lebanon is meaningful and it's real," he said.

It's not an accident that the president (Barack Obama) asked me to come to Lebanon to personally demonstrate to you our commitment to Lebanon is meaningful and it's real

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden

Military assistance

Biden wrapped up his seven-hour visit at Beirut airport, standing before an array of military equipment, including tanks, armored personnel carriers and helicopters that he said are part of more than half a billion dollars in U.S. military assistance to Lebanon.

"We believe it's crucial that you be able to do your mission to defend the state and citizens of Lebanon," Biden said, standing next to Defense Minister Elias Murr.

"One army, one armed group, one police power, one capability to control your own country," he added, in an apparent swipe at Hezbollah, the only armed Lebanese faction and arguably one of the most powerful non-state actors in the Middle East.

Biden and Murr noted that the United States had committed to provide further training and assistance to the Lebanese armed forces over the next five years.

U.S. military assistance has totaled more than $410 million since 2006 and includes aircraft, tanks, artillery and training.

One army, one armed group, one police power, one capability to control your own country

Biden

”Meddling”

Ahead of Biden's arrival, Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah accused him of coming to meddle in the country's internal affairs ahead of the elections.

"It appears that this visit is part of a U.S. bid to supervise the electoral campaign of a Lebanese party which feels threatened politically ... in light of the expected outcome of the legislative vote," Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah told AFP.

He was making a clear reference to the current U.S.-backed majority in parliament which stands to lose in the upcoming vote to a Hezbollah-led coalition backed by Syria and Iran.

"We call on all Lebanese, regardless of their political views, to rise up against such meddling which represents a flagrant violation of Lebanese sovereignty," Fadlallah said.

It appears that this visit is part of a U.S. bid to supervise the electoral campaign of a Lebanese party which feels threatened politically

Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah told AFP

It is unclear to what degree aid would continue under any new government led by a Hezbollah ally.

Biden's lightning visit, held amid tight security, comes in the footsteps of a similar trip last month by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton who urged the Lebanese to hold free and fair elections.

Analysts said that Biden and Clinton's visits, coming so near the legislative elections, could be a sign that Washington is keen to boost Lebanon’s president, who was elected by consensus last year and is considered a neutral figure.

"There is a serious chance that the opposition will turn into the majority (after) the election, and the U.S. will in this case have to re-orient its engagement in Lebanon," Simon Karam, Lebanon's former ambassador to Washington told AFP. "And this visit could be one way for them to pave the way toward such a development."

Biden was the first sitting American vice president to visit Lebanon since George Bush Senior came to Beirut in 1983 in the aftermath of the bombing of the U.S. marine barracks that killed 241 troops.

Post election relations

If Hezbollah and its allies win the majority in parliament, such a scenario could force the United States to rethink its approach towards Lebanon, a deeply divided nation which has endured decades of wars, political crises and political assassinations.

Washington has repeatedly said that it will have no dealings with Hezbollah until the group renounces violence.

Hezbollah officials say they have received assurances that the West does not envisage imposing a boycott like the one it slapped on Hamas when the Islamic movement won the Palestinian parliamentary election in January 2006.

There is a serious chance that the opposition will turn into the majority the election, and the U.S. will in this case have to re-orient its engagement in Lebanon

Simon Karam, Lebanese former ambassador to Washington