Lebanon to start preparing refugee returns next week

Lebanese officials will start to lay the groundwork next week for a plan to facilitate refugee returns, the prime minister-designate’s adviser for Russian affairs said in comments published Saturday by the state-run National News Agency.

The basis for the return will be set in cooperation with Russian officials, George Chaaban was quoted as saying by the NNA, and the return will be “agreed on by the international community, the Americans and the Russians.”

With U.S.-Russian safety guarantees, Chaaban ruled out the possibility of obstructions to the refugee return plan.

Lebanon is set to form a joint committee with Russia to organize the returns, with General Security playing a key role coordinating on the Lebanese side.

Last month, Lebanese officials welcomed a Russian proposal to the United States for the return of Syrian refugees. On July 26, a Russian delegation that included the Russian president’s Syria envoy, Alexander Lavrentiev, and Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin, visited Lebanon to discuss the country’s role in the initiative.