Tom Barrack’s remarks sparked displeasure, even though he later offered clarifications, on the grounds that the matter fell outside his remit and that he had overstepped the efforts of U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa, who had been working to clarify his country’s position on opening up to Hezbollah and what that entails, particularly as part of his personal efforts to empower the Lebanese state and limit communication between his country and the president of the republic, who in particular is taking on this challenge personally.
