CBNNews.com - LONDON - Britain announced its willingness to meet with Iranian proxy Hezbollah, citing Lebanon's formation of a unity government last May, which includes the terror group.

"We have reconsidered the position…in light of more positive developments within Lebanon," Foreign Office Minister Bill Rammell told fellow parliamentarians. "For that reason, we have explored establishing contacts," he said.

"We will look to have further discussions and our overriding objective within that is to press Hezbollah to play a more constructive role, particularly to move away from violence," Rammell said.

Iran, Qatar and several private contributors in the Gulf States recently boosted Hezbollah's financing by an estimated $1 billion.

In May 2009, less than two weeks after Hezbollah took control of western Beirut, the government agreed to grant the group parliamentary veto power in exchange for backing Michel Suleiman as the country's next president.

Lebanon had been without a head of state for six months, following the resignation of Emile Lahoud when his second term as president ended in October 2007.

Sources: Reuters, Haaretz