Today's Date:

Statements made by M. Bernard Kouchner, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs, following his meeting with M. Saad Hariri, (excerpts)

THE MINISTER – With no conclusion before a solution has finally been found in Lebanon and it hasn't. I am very pleased to have met Mr Hariri, been able to talk to him about the next important date, i.e. now in 13 days, that's a very short time.

I believe advantage has to be taken of this opening initiated by Mr Nabih Berry and to which the 14 March Movement, yesterday evening, through Mr Hariri, gave a very good and very positive response.

If I can sum things up by saying that allowing the President of the Republic to be elected with 51% of the votes cast is ruled out and, on the other side, requiring there to be a two-thirds majority is ruled out, then the dialogue can begin. What's going to happen, I hope, is that this dialogue will be positive and that from 25 September, i.e. in 13 days' time, i.e. less than two weeks, until November, things will take place. This election has to be conducted according to the Constitution on the scheduled date, and take place in the most open and most democratic way possible. This is what counts and I think there's some chance of it happening. I'm happy about this.

There may be surprises but I saw my 14 March friends earlier, I've seen Mr Siniora, I've seen Mr Nabih Berry, whom I've known for a long time, who has demonstrated a very open approach and must be thanked for this. He seems to be continuing, at the moment, on television, to demonstrate this open approach and I'd like this to continue. (…)./.