Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General 26 MAY 2015

NOON BRIEFINGS

**Lebanon

This morning, the Deputy Secretary-General, Jan Eliasson, spoke with Prime Minister Tamam Salam of Lebanon to express the UN's support for the Prime Minister and for Lebanon's stability after one year without a President of the Republic.  Yesterday in Beirut, the UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Sigrid Kaag, urged Lebanon's leaders to put national interests above partisan politics for the sake of Lebanon's stability, and to show the flexibility and sense of urgency needed to resolve this issue.

The Deputy Secretary-General and the Special Coordinator stressed that the presidential election is a Lebanese process and they have called on Members of Parliament to uphold the country's democratic tradition and convene to elect a President without further delay.  The Deputy Secretary-General and Ms. Kaag commended the Prime Minister, who has succeeded in upholding a unified Government despite enormous pressures and who has shown remarkable leadership in the face of increasingly difficult circumstances.