It is rare for the Lebanese to be on time for anything, but give them an election and they will arrive before deadline. The presidential election may be nearly six months away, but already the different political forces are getting into position, their aim to ensure that whoever succeeds President Michel Suleiman will advance, or at least not harm, their political agenda.

In the tortuous logic of Lebanese politics, Suleiman’s repeated assertions that he does not want an extension seems, in fact, virtual confirmation that he would accept one if asked – unlike Fouad Chehab, say. The rather unkind comment that Suleiman aspires to be an excellent former president doesn’t square with the fact that this most inconspicuous of men has been propelled from pinnacle to pinnacle in a county that has frustrated more talented men, and he almost certainly wants the ride to continue. [Link]