To mark the seventh anniversary of Rafik Hariri’s assassination, the pillars of the March 14 movement assembled Tuesday to hear a set of addresses by the coalition’s leading figures.

For former Prime Minister Saad Hariri, it was an occasion to highlight his approach to the paramount national issues of the day. Hariri put forward an adamant no to sectarian civil strife, and a firm yes to dialogue about Hezbollah’s weapons.

Speaking to several thousand people gathered at the BIEL Center in Beirut, Hariri underlined that his political stance had nothing to do with a particular sect. Rather, he emphasized, when weapons are in non-state hands, the only result can be discord. The leader of the Future Movement urged that a solution be produced for this issue, no matter how unpalatable this might be for the other side.

A given issue this vital cannot be “off the table.” It is one thing for politicians to talk about the need for a National Defense Strategy, but claiming that Hezbollah’s weapons have no place in the discussion is something else. Issues such as the weapons of the resistance, and how and why non-state weapons are present throughout the country, are vital, legitimate areas for policy discussion. They cannot be imagined away.

In effect, Hariri stressed that despite the government’s policy of “disassociating itself” from what is going on in Syria, the turbulent conditions there cannot be ignored. He said that the developments in Syria should provide a stimulus to the Lebanese, to get their national house in order at this critical time. And Hezbollah should seize this opportunity as an opening to revisit its policies.

The issue of Hezbollah’s weapons will not disappear, despite the fiercest rhetorical denunciations, and the political class simply must deal with the issue.

A National Dialogue process on non-state weapons isn’t a luxury item; it’s needed to keep the lid on the country at a time of huge turbulence, whether at home or in the region.

It is no time for sticking to earlier readings of the situation, as Hariri said. It is time to take a new look toward the future, because the region is changing, and it is no time to condone the lack of sovereignty at home, by seeing weapons in the hands of political parties. The participants in National Dialogue are agreed that Israel is the country’s enemy, but the state must be the ultimate decider when it comes to issues of war and peace, or else it lacks sovereignty.

As the former prime minister said, a certain sect is not being accused of being opposed to sovereignty, but neither can it decide alone when the country’s future is at stake. Hariri has issued a firm no to civil strife, by emphasizing that dialogue and cooperation will be the only way to see Lebanon emerge stable and successful. But the dialogue on Hezbollah’s weapons must begin, in serious fashion.