The Future Movement and Hezbollah held a dialogue Dec. 24 under the auspices of parliament Speaker Nabih Berri. Attending on behalf of the Future Movement were Nader al-Hariri, director of the office of former Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri, Minister Nouhad al-Machnouk and the parliamentarian Samir al-Jisr. Representing Hezbollah were Hussein Khalil, political assistant to the party's secretary-general, Minister of Industry Hussein al-Hajj Hassan and the parliamentarian Hassan Fadlallah.
Despite the positive nature of the event, no serious sign has emerged that the dialogue will lead to electing a president for the republic. The presidential issue is subject to a Saudi-Iranian settlement that seems far from being realized in light of the conflicts between the two countries over various regional issues, including Syria, Yemen and Iraq.