BEIRUT, Lebanon, Aug. 13 (UPI) -- Lebanese President Joseph Aoun rejected Wednesday "any interference" in his country's internal affairs, telling a top Iranian visiting official that no group in Lebanon is allowed to carry weapons or seek strength and support from outside forces.
Aoun's firm comments were made during a meeting with Iran's Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani at the Presidential Palace in Baabda shortly after his arrival in Beirut.
"We reject any interference in our internal affairs, regardless of its source," he said, according to a statement released by the Presidential Palace. Aoun emphasized that Lebanon does not interfere in the internal affairs of any other state, including Iran, and therefore expects the same in return.
Iran, which has funded and armed Hezbollah since the group's formation in the early 1980s, has criticized a Lebanese cabinet decision last week that endorses the objectives of a U.S.-proposed plan to disarm the militant group.
The decision also mandates the Lebanese Army to develop a strategy for enforcing a state monopoly on weapons by the end of the year.
