BEIRUT: President Michel Sleiman said Wednesday that democracy in the Arab world must occur, but without bloodshed.

"Democracy in the Arab world is imperative, but by peaceful means without bloodshed,” Sleiman said in an interview with An-Nahar on the plane as he headed back home from Riyadh late Wednesday.

“The United States and the West need not have a different criteria for democracy,” Sleiman said, according to the interview published Thursday.

Sleiman flew to Riyadh earlier Wednesday, leading an official delegation to pay their respects to Saudi Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdul-Aziz who died Saturday.

Regarding resumption of national dialogue, Sleiman said his call for all-party talks was still in place and has “never stopped.”

Asked about Speaker Nabih Berri’s efforts to resume dialogue, Sleiman said: “Let’s see what Berri’s got to offer.”

Regarding the controversy over the issue of funding for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, the president reiterated that financing the STL “is in the best interest of Lebanon.”