Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov visited Beirut for three days before moving on to Turkey and Syria. More than 20 Lebanese political figures from the different parties met with him, and he held some 10 news briefings, during which he touched on a number of issues, including the Syrian situation, the Iranian nuclear file and the Lebanese presidential elections.

His statements about Lebanon's situation were, however, characterized by vagueness. Several sources who attended meetings between Bogdanov and representatives of Hezbollah and the Change and Reform Bloc told Al-Monitor that his hosts got the impression that he “told each party what it wants to hear” about Moscow’s stance on the Lebanese situation, a practice that raised questions.

Bogdanov was all over the Lebanese news Dec. 5–7. He met with parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and then visited the Cabinet’s headquarters and met with Prime Minister Tammam Salam. He later traveled to the Foreign Affairs Ministry and visited all the political parties. He had dinner at Druze leader Walid Jumblatt’s place and spoke with the Christian leader Michel Aoun. He also had an elaborate meeting with the Sunni Future Movement parliamentary bloc and met with former Presidents Amin Gemayel and Michel Suleiman and the head of Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc, Mohammad Raad. He also made time to visit Orthodox figures and personalities from different political orientations and sects.

People who attended these meetings noted that Bogdanov’s statements were contradictory and varied depending on the host and the place. Some issues were consistent throughout his stops, and most were general headlines, along the lines of Russia supporting Lebanon’s independence and stability and Moscow's position that there is no solution for the crisis in Syria except through dialogue. Bogdanov also asserted that Russia is counting on a final agreement between Iran and the P5+1 (the five permanent UN Security Council members and Germany) on Tehran's nuclear program.