Biden reaffirms Lebanese sovereignty

BEIRUT, Lebanon, May 22 (UPI) -- U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said Friday that Washington will review its aid to Lebanon based on the outcome of an upcoming election there.

Speaking after his meeting with Lebanese President Michel Sleiman in Beirut, Biden said the United States will base its foreign aid package to the troubled nation based on the "composition of the new government and the policies it is advocating."

Biden said also that the United States is committed to peace in the region. He noted that Lebanon's sovereignty "will not be traded away."

U.S. officials said Biden's visit to Beirut was a show of support for Lebanese independence prior to legislative elections.

A top official with the militant Hezbollah, which could gain a parliamentary majority in elections two weeks away, called Biden's visit an example of the U.S. interfering to rally support for the pro-Western political factions, the BBC reported.