Statement:

After the meeting, Minister Sharaf El-Din made the following statement:

“I was pleased today to visit the President of the Republic and discussed with him the file of the return of the displaced Syrians to their country, and my expected visit to Syria at the end of this week, on Sunday and Monday.

I was encouraged and blessed by His Excellency, because this issue is vital and humanitarian and has economic necessities in light of what Lebanon is suffering from. By God, we will have positive results by the next Monday and Tuesday, especially as the concerned Syrian bodies extend their hand for cooperation, and there are preparations for the success of the meetings, and a working paper that includes a complete return map and the idea of ​​establishing a quartet committee from the Lebanese state that coordinates and follows up with the committee in Syria, and I am very optimistic”.

Questions & Answers:

Question: Will you be able to close the file of the return of the displaced?

Answer: “I do not promise to close the file, but it is enough for us to put the train on the tracks to reach safety. We presented our idea as the Ministry of the Displaced, and it received the approval of presidents, to return 16,000 displaced persons per month in proportion to the absorptive capacity of the Syrian state, because we want the displaced to return safely and dignified.

The Syrian state has pledged to establish shelters with all its requirements, including infrastructure, roads, electricity, potable water, sewage, schools and hospitals in the nearest place, while providing public transportation at very acceptable prices, and helping farmers to return to their lands. Noting that the idea is based on the principle of returning to the villages and the same environment from which the displaced were displaced, and we are optimistic, God willing”.

Question: Is your move today a continuation of the meeting that was held yesterday?

Answer: “There is a committee for the return of displaced Syrians to their country, consisting of seven ministers, headed by the Prime Minister. Here, I would like to clarify to the media that I was not absent from yesterday’s meeting, because the meeting was related to the competence of the two parties and the merger proposed in Brussels, which is totally rejected and the matter is the responsibility of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Social Affairs, in addition to the issue of those who enter illegally every month and who require framing and legalization, which are the responsibility of the General Security Directorate, and Major General Abbas Ibrahim was present.

In our work, we complement each other, and all of us, as a committee, speak within a framework and according to one logic. My task is to deal with the Syrian state and the bodies concerned with the matter and to form a file on everything related to the return of the displaced, starting with the UNHCR, passing through the ambassadors, to the envoys, so that we can know what they want and what can be implemented and followed up. I am in complete coordination with all ministers”.