Safadi Urges Miqati to 'Exceptionally' Approve Funding of STL in Installments
Caretaker Finance Minister Mohammed al-Safadi called on Saturday on caretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati to “exceptionally” approve the funding of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon despite the resignation of the cabinet.
According to the state-run National News Agency, al-Safadi sent a letter to Miqati urging him to “exceptionally approve the payment of Lebanon's share to fund the STL for 2013 in three installments.”
Miqati said in May that his cabinet cannot pay Lebanon's share of the STL funding.
“The caretaker cabinet cannot be responsible for the matter as it falls under current expenditure,” Miqati explained at the time, implying that the succeeding cabinet should deal with the matter.
Lebanon is obligated to pay around $33 million, which is 49 percent of the STL's budget.
Earlier on Saturday, a source close to the Tribunal said in comments published in An Nahar newspaper that Lebanon's failure to provide the STL with its share of the funding of the tribunal for 2013 will tarnish its image internationally and will constitute further burden on the country.
According to the source, Lebanese officials pledged to pay the country's percentage after the cabinet is formed as the resigned government lacks the mechanism to carry out the matter.
The source didn't rule out that the resignation of Miqati's cabinet was linked to the funding of the STL.
The source said that the STL could as the United Nations Security Council to pressure Lebanon to pay its shares.
If Lebanon failed to pay the funds on time then the U.N. could pay from its allocations until the new government is formed.
“Lebanon will commit to its obligations and pay its shares,” the source added.
The tribunal was formed in 2009 to investigate the suicide attack that killed Hariri and 22 others in Beirut in February 2005.
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