François Picard welcomes Ghassan Salamé, Lebanon’s Minister of Culture. Salamé portrays Lebanon as a country that has preserved political pluralism and freedom of expression, and persevered despite decades of conflict. Within this context, he frames negotiation with Israel not as a matter of choice, but of necessity — the only viable path toward stability, dignity, and the basic conditions for the Lebanese people to live and thrive. These conditions, he argues, depend on full sovereignty over land, people, and waters, alongside the consistent application of international law.