Kataeb lawmaker Salim Sayegh on Thursday reiterated his utter rejection of using Lebanon as a proxy battleground to serve non-Lebanese agendas, slamming Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah’s belligerent statements against Cyprus.

"Yesterday, we heard the Secretary-General of Hezbollah warning Cyprus against cooperating with Israel in the event of a war. Nasrallah speaks as if he were the President of Lebanon or has a mandate from the Lebanese people to speak on its behalf; he wants to control Lebanon's foreign relations and its international standing,” Sayegh said following his meeting with Maronite Patriarch Bechara Al-Rahi in Bkirki.

Sayegh said that life, civilizations, and nations have evolved, stressing the need to move beyond the old eras of ignorance when it was a duty to support one’s brother whether he is right or wrong.

“We must stand by our brother if he is right; if he is wrong, he should be held accountable. Even Imam Moussa al-Sadr said that it was time we moved beyond the old ignorant times. Nowadays, we ought to rely solely on the rule of law and the authority of standards."

The Kataeb MP said that it was unacceptable for a local faction to wage a war unilaterally and then expect everyone else to support it blindly.

“We stand with the Lebanese state and will not support armed groups or militias with their own agendas. Let them consider us absolved from this national partnership. Whoever wants war must bear its consequences alone."

"In the name of human fraternity and solidarity, our homes remain open to everyone. However, no one will drag us, whether through politics, security, or military means, into a position we have rejected from the very beginning,” Sayegh affirmed.