Lebanese defense minister to visit Iran

Lebanese Defense Minister Fayez Ghusn is scheduled to pay a visit to Iran on Saturday at the invitation of his Iranian counterpart Ahmad Vahidi, the local Mehr news agency reported on Friday. Ghusn is scheduled to meet with a number of high-ranking Iranian officials and discuss various issues including Tehran- Beirut ties during his trip. In October 2011, Iran's ambassador to Lebanon Ghazanfar Roknabadi said Tehran was ready to equip the Lebanese army and expand bilateral defense cooperation without setting any preconditions. Speaking at a meeting with Ghusn in Lebanon's capital Beirut, Roknabadi said that developing stronger defense cooperation between the two countries was necessary given the daily violations of Lebanese airspace by the Israeli fighter jets. Ghusn, for his part, praised Iran's support for Lebanon and said Lebanon was proud of having Iran's support. Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi has reiterated that the Islamic republic is fully prepared to provide Lebanese army with cutting-edge military equipment if it receives any request from Lebanon for equipping its army.