By Mirella Hodeib The Daily Star NEW YORK: Prime Minister Najib Mikati told U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that Lebanon will fulfill its international obligations Monday, while Clinton cautioned Mikati against becoming involved in the situation in Syria. “We discussed the many international obligations that Lebanon has and the prime minister assured me that Lebanon would always fulfill [its] international obligations,” Clinton told reporters following a meeting with Mikati at the office of the president of the U.N. Security Council in New York.

She also vowed that the U.S. would continue providing assistance to the Lebanese Army.

Mikati told The Daily Star that the U.S. administration was “understanding” and aware of the peculiar nature of Lebanese politics.

“They showed understanding for our situation and the most important thing for them is that Lebanon keeps a neutral stance,” he added, in reference to events in Syria.

Echoing Mikati, Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman said Clinton expressed to the Lebanese prime minister the U.S. administration’s understanding of Lebanon’s “very delicate situation.”

“The secretary reiterated our strong commitment to Lebanon, our understanding that Lebanon is in a very delicate situation and our support for Lebanon’s unity, Lebanon’s stability, and Lebanon’s sovereignty,” said the former U.S. ambassador to Lebanon.

“We also cautioned the prime minister that Lebanon needs to be very, very careful in not getting caught up in the unrest in Syria, in terms of not allowing Lebanon to be a way for Syria to evade sanctions and accountability for the brutality that the Syria government is showing against its people,” he said.

According to a statement circulated by Mikati’s media office, the prime minister informed the U.S. delegation that his government was working on “promoting stability in Lebanon and safeguarding it against the negative repercussions of events in the region.”

The prime minister reiterated that Lebanon cannot be selective in implementing international resolutions and called on the U.S. to continue providing assistance to the Lebanese Army so that it can carry out its missions, especially those related to U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701 which ended the summer 2006 war with Israel.

According to the statement, Clinton told Mikati that while the U.S. was aware of the necessity of continuing assistance to the Lebanese Army, she said armed groups cannot carry out the role of the state or the government, referring to Hezbollah, which Washington considers a terrorist organization.

“In all cases, calls by the Lebanese government to provide assistance to the Lebanese Armed Forces is the right thing to do,” she was quoted as saying. “We would like to continue our assistance to the LAF despite the internal challenges the U.S. is facing because we believe that the LAF is an institution capable of protecting Lebanon’s independence and sovereignty.”

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, whom Mikati met after talks with Clinton, also expressed Russia’s willingness to provide assistance to the Lebanese Army and asked Mikati to inform Russia of the needs of the army.

Lavrov also expressed his country’s support for Lebanon’s sovereignty, adding that Lebanon should be kept isolated from the repercussions of developments in the region.

Mikati also met Arab League Secretary General Nabil al-Arabi in New York Monday and contacted President Michel Sleiman to brief him on the outcome of his meetings in New York.

The prime minister is due to address the U.N. Security Council Tuesday during a session on the Middle East and will later meet with Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.