US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the framework for an agreement between Lebanon and Israel after negotiations in Washington DC.
Details regarding the agreement remain scarce. But Rubio made it clear in his remarks Friday that the agreement was only a “first step” in further negotiations.
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“This is the beginning of the beginning,” Rubio said, surrounded by representatives from both Lebanon and Israel.
“We have a lot of work ahead of us. We never underestimate the difficulty of the work ahead, but we understand its importance and how important it is.”
The two countries met in Washington, D.C., this week for four days of U.S.-mediated talks starting Tuesday. Lebanese group Hezbollah is not participating in the talks.
However, continuing fighting in Lebanon threatens to disrupt efforts to forge a ceasefire between Iran and the United States.
On June 17, the United States and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to halt the U.S.-Israel war against Iran. The 14-point document called for “an immediate and permanent cessation of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon.”
However, Israel occupies nearly one-fifth of Lebanon and continues to bombard the country even after the memorandum was signed.
Last Friday, the two countries agreed to a cease-fire, but Israeli forces remain in southern Lebanon, and although attacks have slowed, they remain strong.
For example, on Thursday, three people were killed in a strike in southern Lebanon and more homes were allegedly set on fire as Israel continues its offensive against Hezbollah.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah leadership has called for withdrawal from Israel as a prerequisite for peace. “Israel must leave unconditionally,” Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said in a separate statement Friday.
But shortly after the framework agreement was announced, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shot down those prospects.
“The most important thing is that, first of all, Israel remains in the security zone in southern Lebanon. This is a great achievement, and we will maintain it unless Hezbollah disarms,” Netanyahu said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah continued to refuse talks, arguing that it would undermine Lebanon’s sovereignty.
“The course being pursued by the Lebanese authorities amounts to unilateral and gratuitous concessions that will only harm the country and benefit its enemy Israel,” said Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah.
The ongoing fighting in Lebanon is a source of heightened tensions between Prime Minister Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump, who are facing domestic backlash over their war with Iran.
Earlier this month, President Trump acknowledged calling Netanyahu a “lunatic” but insisted the Israeli leader was a “very good man” and that he and Netanyahu had a “great partnership.”
“There’s a little bit of controversy over Lebanon,” President Trump said at the Group of Seven (G7) summit in France last week. “We don’t need to destroy a building every time someone from Hezbollah breaks into it.”
He also encouraged Netanyahu to adopt a “softer touch” in approaching Lebanon.
“They could do a better job with Hezbollah on this. I don’t think they’re doing a good job, and I feel very sorry for Lebanon,” Trump added.
At a news conference Friday, Rubio reiterated his message of concern for Lebanon.
“For decades, the Lebanese people have suffered tremendously as a result of external interference in their affairs by countries seeking to use Lebanon as a launching pad for attacks,” he said. “This is not what the Lebanese people want and it is not what they deserve.”
This is not the first time the United States has hosted talks between Israel and Lebanon in recent months. This week’s meeting was the fifth round of mediated talks between the two countries.
For example, Rubio hosted talks between the two sides in April after continuing fighting in Lebanon threatened to derail a new cease-fire agreement between the United States and Iran signed on April 7.
The talks were touted as the first high-level dialogue between the two countries since 1993, but the talks ultimately ended with little more than an agreement to “start direct negotiations” in the future.
Two days of negotiations followed in May, ending with a “negotiating framework to advance durable peace” similar to the one announced on Friday.
Lebanese Ambassador to the United States Nada Hamadeh called the talks “long and difficult.” But she expressed optimism that the updated framework could move peace talks forward.
“The Trilateral Framework that we signed today is the first step towards restoring Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, ensuring a permanent and final cessation of hostilities, enabling the return of its people to their homeland, and ensuring that all Lebanese can live in peace, security and prosperity,” she said.
Israeli Ekiel Reiter praised Hamadeh as a “tough negotiator” who fights “like a lioness” for his country. He also claimed that the meeting “put the train back on the tracks.”
“We are moving in the right direction. The final destination? Peace between our two countries. True peace where both countries live in security and where the sovereignty of Israel and Lebanon is respected, respected and protected,” Reiter said.
“This performance-based trilateral framework agreement leaves Iran out, Hezbollah withdrew, and clears the way for peace between Israel and Lebanon.”
Reiter also said the meeting advances President Trump’s vision of “peace through strength.”
The full terms of the framework agreement have not yet been made public.
One proposal reportedly under consideration before Friday’s announcement was the creation of a “test zone” that would allow the Lebanese army to regain control of parts of Israeli-occupied territory.
In a statement after the press conference, Rubio provided further details about the agreement, including the role of the United States.
The Trump administration has pledged to immediately allocate $100 million for humanitarian aid in coordination with the United Nations and said it will reimburse the Lebanese military for $30 million to support “lasting peace.”
Rubio added that Hezbollah is also a central part of the framework.
“This agreement establishes a clear and structured process that restores Lebanon’s sovereignty, disarms Hezbollah, dismantles its terrorist infrastructure, and allows Israel to return to its borders once the threat to its people is removed,” the Secretary of State said.
But experts doubt how substantive Friday’s framework will be. Rami Khouri, a researcher at the American University of Beirut, said the framework alone “is not that important.”
“It’s a public relations idea that we want to see a final agreement between Lebanon and Israel where Lebanon and Israel don’t shoot, Hezbollah and Israel don’t shoot,” Khouli said.
However, he noted that Hezbollah’s non-participation in negotiations could prevent any agreement from being concluded. “The Lebanese army alone cannot disarm Hezbollah,” he said.
Still, Khoury says that’s not the biggest hurdle in future negotiations.
“If the Lebanese army can protect all of Lebanon, if Israel stops attacking Lebanon, and if Lebanon’s sovereignty and security are guaranteed, Hezbollah should not be a big problem in the long run,” he said.
“The biggest problem is that this whole process, and the symbolism of it being in the State Department seems to bear it out, is premised on the fact that Israel’s security must be guaranteed before the Lebanese can have rights.”
Khouri said the dispute was “solvable” as long as both sides treated each other equally. But he added that he hasn’t seen anything like that so far.
