POLICY
STATEMENTS

The ATFL publishes policy statements regarding US-Lebanon relations on issues that affect our shared interests in the stability, security, and development of Lebanon and the region.

ATFL Commends Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair and Ranking Member Call for Strong US Leadership in Lebanon’s Presidential Electoral Process

Washington, DC, April 26th, 2023, the American Task Force on Lebanon (ATFL), a leadership organization of Americans of Lebanese descent, applauds Senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Jim Risch (R-ID), Chair and Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, respectively, for their bipartisan message to the Biden Administration to lead the international community in supporting the timely election of a president committed to serving the people of Lebanon.

On April 25th, 2023, Senators Menendez and Risch sent a letter to President Biden, “urging the US “to work closely with our allies and partners in the region to support a legitimate democratic process and presidential candidates that, unlike previous presidents, will demonstrate the ability to serve and be accountable to the people of Lebanon.”

The Senators also drew particular attention to Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri and Hezbollah for delaying the presidential electoral process in Parliament to bolster the prospects of their preferred candidate, at the expense “of candidates with broader support who are more willing to tackle Lebanon’s many challenges.”

“We want to thank Senators Menendez and Risch for their bipartisan and steadfast support of the US-Lebanon relationship,” said ATFL President Ed Gabriel. “We strongly encourage the Biden Administration to heed their recommendation and lean into the presidential electoral process. There is massive confusion in Lebanon on where the US stands today. Now is the time for the US to draw a line, outlining the type of government it can partner with and the characteristics of a government it would find unacceptable.” he added.

###

Read the full letter here.

OP-EDS

ATFL Op-Eds are perspectives from ATFL leadership and guests on current events of importance to the US-Lebanon relationship.

Op-Eds by
ATFL President Edward Gabriel

Current President and CEO of ATFL, former US Ambassador Edward M. Gabriel has decades of experience throughout the Middle East.

US-Lebanon Relations: Setting a New International Framework for a More Responsive Government

The Middle East Institute and the American Task Force on Lebanon with the cooperation of the Lebanese International Financial Executives convened a group of experts on Lebanon who co-authored this policy brief.

US-Lebanon Relations: Setting a New International Framework for a More Responsive Government
11:00 am - 12:30 pm
Thursday, January 19th, 2023
Co-Sponsor:

Lebanon is on a tragic trajectory, never before seen in its history. The next few months, with or without needed reforms, will shape its path for years to come. Lebanon’s failings can be attributed to endemic corruption by the political class and the “state within a state” impunity of Hezbollah. Lebanon’s leaders must take the necessary risks to reverse their country from falling into the abyss of an economic and political meltdown, but they will not be able to undertake this challenge alone.

The US must lead its friends in Europe and the Gulf to encourage political parties and leaders, who have previously failed to respond effectively to their people, to create a new framework for Lebanon to begin its recovery. The time is now ripe to build on the US-mediated maritime agreement by encouraging Lebanon to take steps on other achievable objectives that continue the momentum forward. The Lebanon Working Group proposes seven policy areas on which the US should focus its work with Lebanon.

Speakers

  • President and CEO of the American Task Force on Lebanon, Former US Ambassador to Morocco
  • President of the Middle East Institute
  • Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau for Near Eastern Affairs with Responsibility for the Levant and Syria Engagement
  • Legislative Director, Office of Representative Darin LaHood (R-IL)
  • Global Fellow at the Wilson Center, Former Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, Former US Ambassador to Lebanon
  • Vice President of Policy at the Middle East Institute
  • Senior Advisor, Executive Office and Middle East and North Africa Center at the US Institute of Peace

Past Reports