During his visit to the United Kingdom at the invitation of
the UK Chief of Defence Staff General Sir Nick Carter,
Lebanese Army Commander General Joseph Aoun alongside
General Sir Carter met with Rear Admiral Simon Asquith,
Commander Operations for the Royal Navy, Mr David Quarrey,
the Prime Minister’s International Affairs Adviser and
Deputy National Security Adviser, and other senior Defence
and security officials.
The visit was an opportunity to appreciate the UK’s support
to Lebanon and its army. Discussions focused on UK support
to the LAF and ways to expand the partnership to fight
terrorism and support land and sea border security.
Discussions also covered the LAF’s role in protecting human
rights and the right to peaceful protest, and the
importance of the LAF upholding the highest standards and
being transparent as a general principle in implementing
all his missions.
At the end of the visit Chief of Defence Staff General Sir
Nick Carter said:
The Lebanese and UK Armed Forces have a long and proud
history of working together. As part of today’s visit we
discussed how best we can continue to build on our
Defence relationship. Our personnel continue to serve and
train alongside each other and we remain committed to
providing support in the region on countering extremism
and reinforcing border security.
Lebanese Army Commander General Joseph Aoun expressed his
deep thanks to his British counterpart for his invitation,
reiterating the strong relationship between both armies and
expressed his confidence in continuing cooperation in the
interest of the two friendly countries:
This visit is to thank the United Kingdom for its
effective participation in supporting border security,
and to reinforce cooperation and work towards continued
support to the Lebanese Armed Forces amidst the huge
challenges facing it, especially in fighting terrorism
and border security.
Following up on the visit British Ambassador Chris Rampling
said in a statement:
General Aoun’s visit to the UK comes at a critical time.
There are many challenges facing the LAF. We have seen in
recent weeks a demonstration of the ongoing terrorist
threat in Lebanon, while the economic situation has put
more pressure on the Lebanese security agencies. The UK
is a friend of Lebanon and will continue to stand by its
people including in times of need.
Between 2016 and 2020, the UK Government has spent over
$100 million on training mentoring and equipping the LAF,
in particular the four Land Border Regiments to counter
illegal crossing operations. UK experts supervised the
building of 41 border watchtowers and 38 Forward Operating
Bases along the northern and eastern borders, and donated
13 mobile observation systems. A specialised Land Border
training facility has been established in the Bekaa with
over 8,000 LBR troops trained in border operations. In
addition to the borders, by the end of 2020, the UK will
have trained over 14,000 soldiers for internal security
operations across Lebanon in 3 urban training facilities.
