You're listening to a podcast from the BBC World Service. This is Hard Talk with me, Stephen Sacker.

Thanks for downloading this edition of the program. I do hope you enjoy it.

Lebanese politics is a world of complex alliances, delicate intercommunal arrangements, and almost

permanent instability. Few insiders know that better than my

guest today, Lebanon's foreign minister, Gibran Basile. He's a Christian politician from one of the

country's elite families. His father-in-law is President Michel Aoun. The very fact that Lebanon

currently has a functioning government is something

to be celebrated. Often the infighting between the country's Sunni and Shia Muslims, the Christians

and the Druze leaves governance in chaos. But even now, it's far from clear that Lebanon's

leaders are capable of dealing with a host of deep

problems. The economy is a mess. The national debt is spiraling and regional instability threatens

to pull Lebanon apart at the seams, with Syria, Iran and Israel, all regarding Lebanon as a vital national security interest.

In this context is the current Lebanese government making a bad situation worse.

Well, Gibran Basile joins me now. Welcome to Hard Talk.

Thank you.

Once again, it looks as though Lebanon could be drawn in to a dangerous regional conflict.

And your government appears to be doing nothing right now to reduce the tension.

Why is that?

Actually, we want to avoid getting into any trouble.

Our policy is to be disassociated from any conflict in the region,

but we are obliged to protect our country.

And we are repeatedly aggressed by Israeli violations of UN Resolution 1701.

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