Israel, Lebanon Agree to Launch Direct Talks After US Meeting

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Israel and Lebanon have agreed to hold direct negotiations after a "productive discussion" between the two parties in Washington, the United States (US) said on Tuesday.

"The participants held productive discussions on steps toward launching direct negotiations between Israel and Lebanon," said US Department of State spokesperson Tommy Pigott in a statement as quoted by CNA.

"All sides agreed to launch direct negotiations at a mutually agreed time and venue," he said.

The announcement was made after Israeli and Lebanese representatives held talks for over two hours mediated by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

"The United States congratulated the two countries on this historic milestone and expressed its support for further talks, and for the government of Lebanon's plans to restore the monopoly of force and to end Iran's overbearing influence," Pigott said.

And "affirmed that any agreement to cease hostilities must be reached between the two governments, brokered by the United States, and not through any separate track," he added.

Rare Meeting

As reported by France24, Lebanese and Israeli envoys met in Washington on Tuesday for the first face-to-face talks in decades between representatives of the two countries, mediated by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

The Rubio-mediated meeting was attended by Israeli Ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter and Lebanese Ambassador to Washington Nada Hamadeh Moawad, as well as US Ambassador to Beirut Michel Issa.

"The Israeli and Lebanese governments are engaging in open, direct, high-level diplomatic talks – the first such talks since 1993 – brokered by the United States," a US Department of State official said on condition of anonymity.

"This conversation will scope the ongoing dialogue about how to ensure the long-term security of Israel's northern border and to support the government of Lebanon's determination to reclaim full sovereignty over its territory," the official claimed.

However, the two sides remain diametrically opposed.

"This dialogue between Israel and Lebanon... is aimed at disarming the Hezbollah terrorist organization, removing them from Lebanon, and establishing peaceful relations between our two countries," said Israeli government spokesperson Shosh Bedrosian to reporters on Monday.

"We will not discuss a ceasefire with Hezbollah, which continues to carry out indiscriminate attacks against Israel and our civilians," Bedrosian claimed.

'Low Expectations'

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday that "we want the dismantling of Hezbollah's weapons, and we want a real peace agreement that will last for generations".

From Lebanon's side, President Joseph Aoun said on Monday that he hopes the talks in Washington would yield "an agreement... on a ceasefire in Lebanon, with the aim of starting direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel".

Meanwhile, US diplomats have been in a difficult position in recent days regarding the Lebanese conflict, fearing it could hinder talks with Iran, which failed to reach a breakthrough on Sunday in Pakistan.

The administration of President Donald Trump insists on the disarmament of Hezbollah, but also respects Lebanon's territorial integrity and sovereignty, while simultaneously upholding Israel's rights - a position that appears difficult to reconcile.

It takes "a lot of imagination and optimism to think" that the issues between Israel and Lebanon can be resolved in Washington on Tuesday, said a former Israeli defense official on condition of anonymity, adding that "expectations are low".

"It will be very difficult to reach any agreement, and Israel will create a buffer zone in the north very similar to what we have in Gaza," the former official added, a move that violates Lebanon's sovereignty.

Naim Qassem - a pro-Iran Hezbollah leader, currently fighting against Israel - called for the talks to be canceled even before they began, calling them 'futile'.

According to a poll conducted by the Israel Democracy Institute, the results of which were released on Monday, 80 percent of Jewish Israelis "think that Israel should continue the fighting in Lebanon against Hezbollah, regardless of developments vis-a-vis Iran, even if this results in friction with the US administration."

Lebanon was dragged into a regional war against Iran on March 2 after the pro-Tehran Hezbollah group attacked Israel in retaliation for the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. However, before March 2, Israel had been attacking Lebanon almost daily despite a ceasefire in November 2024, with Hezbollah refraining from retaliation.

Since then, Israeli attacks in Lebanon have killed over 2,000 people. Attacks, claimed by some right-wing Israeli camps to establish Greater Israel in southern Lebanon, have also forced over a million people to flee, and Israeli ground forces have invaded southern Lebanon, despite international calls for a ceasefire.

Read: Sudan: Iran War Prompts 'Massive' Food and Fuel Price Hikes

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