Rubio hails Lebanon for peace efforts after meeting its president
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US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (right) praised Lebanon's efforts to reclaim state sovereignty and disarm Hezbollah after a meeting with President Joseph Aoun.
PHOTO: SECRUBIO/X
WASHINGTON – US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Lebanese President Joseph Aoun in Washington on July 19, praising the country for its “move towards peace” after the latest round of Lebanon-Israel talks.
It was the first trip to the US capital by a Lebanese head of state since Michel Suleiman was received by president Barack Obama in 2009.
Aoun and Rubio held talks at the State Department, and Lebanese officials said Aoun is due to meet President Donald Trump on July 21.
Rubio said Aoun’s government had made a “determined effort to reclaim Lebanon’s sovereignty, disarm Hezbollah and dismantle its terrorist infrastructure, and move towards peace”, according to a State Department release.
Israel and Lebanon – which do not have formal diplomatic relations – began US-sponsored negotiations in April aimed at reaching a peace deal and permanently ending the Israel-Hezbollah war.
On June 26, they reached a framework agreement in Washington under which the Israeli military is to withdraw from southern Lebanon and the Lebanese army is to deploy, starting with two “pilot zones”.
But the agreement is contingent on the disarmament of Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah, which has flatly rejected both the deal and the Israel-Lebanon negotiations that underpin it.
At the July 19 talks, the Lebanese President stressed that Lebanon and the United States must “align... regarding the implementation of the tripartite framework, through achieving the first Israeli withdrawal from the first pilot zone”.
Following the latest round of talks last week in Rome, Israel and Lebanon agreed on the structure and guidelines for implementing the pilot zones, according to the United States.
The State Department added on July 19 that Washington was committed to the framework and to backing “Lebanon’s efforts to deliver peace”.
Hezbollah pulled Lebanon into the Middle East war on March 2, when it began striking Israel in support of its backer Iran.
Israel responded with air strikes and a ground invasion, and despite a ceasefire it continues sporadic attacks and holds territory in the south.
The United States carried out air strikes on July 19 to “punish” Iran after the first US military deaths since open hostilities rekindled the Middle East war. AFP