On March 14, one month after the new Lebanese cabinet's formation, it agreed on a statement facilitating the presentation of its policy to the country's parliament, set to take place on March 19.
While three cabinet members belonging to the Phalanges party expressed disagreement with what remained for them a contentious issue, the cabinet agreed on its responsibility to preserve Lebanon’s sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity through all legitimate means, affirming the right of Lebanese citizens to resist Israeli occupation, respond to Israeli aggression and liberate Lebanese occupied territories. This formula replaced the earlier cabinet’s “people, army, and resistance,” on which Hezbollah had insisted and which had been a contentious matter for many, many months.
