NNA – Caretaker Minister of National Defense, Maurice Sleem, on Friday inked a memorandum of understanding with his Czech counterpart, Jana Černochová, with the aim of developing military cooperation between the two countries, in presence of Czech Minister of Finance, Zbyněk Stanjura, Ambassador of the Czech Republic to Lebanon, Jiri Dolezel, and an accompanying delegation. 

During an expanded meeting focusing on bilateral relations between the two countries, Černochová highlighted the strong historical ties between the two countries. She affirmed support for Lebanon in all fields and capitalized on military cooperation between the armies of both countries, proposing to send Lebanese soldiers to the Czech Republic for military training and education.

In turn, the Czech Minister of Finance confirmed that he is "in the process of studying what could be offered to Lebanon amid these difficult circumstances," noting "the impact of the Ukrainian-Russian war on his country, especially on the economic level and in light of the heavy influx of Ukrainian refugees.” 

For his part, Minister Sleem expressed his "appreciation for the continuous support of the Czech Republic,” as well as "the aid it provides to Lebanon, especially the medical aid to the Lebanese army."

Sleem also welcomed "the idea of sending Lebanese soldiers for training in the Czech Republic," stressing that "the memorandum of understanding would contribute to strengthening bilateral relations and opening new horizons for future cooperation."

The MoU signed between both sides promotes "cooperation, mainly in the areas of defence, security, military training, education, and cooperation in the field of humanitarian operations, provided that the executive frameworks of this agreement will be developed in subsequent meetings between both countries."

==============R.H.