Marco Rubio to join Israel-Lebanon talks in Washington: Report
According to CNN, US Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa and State Department advisor Michael Needham will also attend the negotiations to be held at the United States Department of State as part of the American delegation.
The Israeli and Lebanese sides will be represented by their ambassadors Yechiel Leiter and Nada Hamadeh, respectively.
CNN said a US State Department official said the talks would focus on advancing dialogue aimed at ensuring long-term security on Israel’s northern border, while also supporting Lebanon’s efforts to restore full sovereignty over its territory and political system.
“This meeting will determine the scope of the ongoing dialogue on how to ensure the long-term security of Israel’s northern border and support the Lebanese Government’s determination to claim full sovereignty over its territory and political life,” the official said.
The official added that despite the ongoing hostilities, the conflict is not between Lebanon as a state but between Israel and Hezbollah, underlining the logic of maintaining diplomatic relations between the two neighboring countries.
“Israel is at war with Hezbollah, not with Lebanon, so there is no reason for the two neighbors not to talk,” he added. Earlier, on April 11, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu intensified his criticism of Iran and its regional proxies, saying Israel was open to signing a “real” and lasting peace agreement with Lebanon and asserting that his government would continue military operations against what he called a “terrorist regime.”
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According to Al Jazeera, Israel has agreed to start official negotiations with Lebanon next week, after weeks of intense cross-border clashes and a ground operation in some parts of Lebanese territory. Netanyahu reiterated that Israel wants a permanent peace agreement with Lebanon and argued that such an agreement should provide long-term security guarantees.
In his video speech, Netanyahu said that Israel is open to a peace agreement with Lebanon, but only if it is long-term and Hezbollah’s military capabilities are “shredded”.
Meanwhile, according to Iranian media Fars news agency, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said at the beginning of the recently concluded Islamabad talks that Tehran was in constant contact with Beirut to ensure the fulfillment of its ceasefire commitments in Lebanon.Also read: NATO allies refuse to join Trump’s Strait of Hormuz blockade
According to Fars, speaking from Islamabad, where official US-Iran negotiations were ongoing to end the ongoing conflict in West Asia, Baghaei said that the Iranian delegation at that time had already contacted Pakistani officials and clearly conveyed their positions and demands.
Fars also reported that Baghaei noted ceasefire violations on Saturday and underlined the fragile nature of the situation on the ground. (MOMENT)
