JAPAN: LEBANESE PM RAFIC HARIRI VISIT

Описание: (6 Feb 2001) English/Nat

Lebanon's prime minister, Rafic Hariri, said on Tuesday that a victory for Ariel Sharon in Israel's prime ministerial election would be a step backward for peace in the Middle East.

Sharon is the hawkish former defence minister who spearheaded Israel's invasion of Lebanon in the early 1980s.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"Having Mr. Sharon in Israel it is a step backward for the peace process."
SUPER CAPTION: Rafic Hariri, Lebanon Prime Minister

Sharon leads incumbent Ehud Barak by nearly 20 percentage points going into Tuesday's election, according to opinion polls published Monday.

There has been apprehension in the Arab world about a Sharon victory because of his hardline views on the Middle East peace process and past anti-Arab actions.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"What I have said and what I am saying now is that Mr. Sharon and the present political platform that he is talking about during his election days now are not encouraging the peace process. But after he becomes prime minister, if he is ready to implement the international law to respect international law and to complement United Nations resolutions and to go ahead with a comprehensive and just peace, the Arabs are ready. But what we say is we don't see that Sharon is willing to do so. If he is, we are."
SUPER CAPTION: Rafic Hariri, Lebanon Prime Minister

Hariri said he hopes the new U-S administration under President George W. Bush will help ease tensions in the Middle East by taking a balanced approach in accordance with international law.

Hariri arrived in Tokyo on Monday for a three-day visit to meet with Japanese politicians and business leaders in an effort to expand trade links and rebuild an economy devastated by the country's 1975-1990 civil war.

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