TEHRAN - Iranian President Mohammad Khatami warned in a meeting with visiting Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatt Sunday that Lebanon was "vulnerable" and risked civil war, the ISNA news agency reported.
"The possibility exists of an aggravation of divisions which could tranform into a civil war," Khatami was quoted as telling Jumblatt, a leading figure in the Lebanese opposition and the campaign to end Syria's military and political dominance of the country.
Iran is a key backer of the Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah and Syria's closest ally in the region. The Islamic republic has been vigorously opposing international pressure on Damascus.
Khatami said that forthcoming elections in Lebanon "must not lead to differences between the influential groups", and also warned that "instability in Syria would be a catastrophe for the region and have harmful effects on Lebanon."
Jumblatt was also told by Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazi that "the United States is seeking to create a crisis in Lebanon to reap bennefits, while the problems in Lebanon should be solved by the Lebanese themselves."
"Jumblatt is influential in Lebanon and this trip is important," foreign ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told reporters earlier Sunday. "Our policy in Lebanon is transparent and we have dialogue with all groups.
"The Islamic Republic of Iran has pressed that (the Lebanese) must pay attention to unity and cooperation and beware of plots by the Zionist regime, which will use any opportunity to exploit disunity," Asefi said.
04/24/2005 15:02 GMT