The president of Lebanon, Joseph Aoun, stated this Wednesday, 17, that the country’s negotiations with Israel in Washington are independent of the agreement between the USA and Iran to end the conflict in the Middle East.
“The assurances we have received, and what we insist on, is that Lebanon’s path in negotiations is independent, although we are certainly in favor of a ceasefire and any country helping us, including Iran,” Aoun said, according to a statement from his office, after Iran and Pakistan said Lebanon was included in the U.S.-Iran deal.
“The Lebanese state is sovereign in its decision-making and, for the first time, it is the one leading the negotiations, and no one is negotiating for us,” Aoun said ahead of the fifth round of talks between the Israelis and Lebanese next week.
Also this Wednesday, Israeli forces carried out new attacks in southern Lebanon. According to the Lebanese National News Agency (NNA), Israeli planes attacked the area of Nabatieh al-Fawqa and the surroundings of the neighboring city of Kfar Tebnit. Israel has not yet commented, but it has already declared that its targets are the radical Shiite militia Hezbollah, supported by Iran.
Lebanon is included in the agreement, according to Pakistan
On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump said Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu needed “to be more responsible towards Lebanon”.
The text of the agreement between the US and Iran to end the war has not yet been released, but Pakistan, the deal’s mediator, says Lebanon is included. In recent days, Netanyahu stated that Israeli troops will remain in southern Lebanon despite the agreement reached between the United States and Iran to end the military escalation in the region.
Israel will act in its own interests
According to him, Israel did not participate in the negotiations led by the American president and will continue to make decisions based on its own security interests.
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In a press conference on Monday, the 15th, Netanyahu said that Iran pressed for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanese territory to be included in the agreement, but that the demand was not accepted. “Iran wanted us to withdraw from there, but that didn’t happen. Do you know why it didn’t happen? Because I remained very, very firm,” he said.
The prime minister reiterated that his government’s main concern remains preventing Tehran from developing nuclear weapons. “With or without a deal, we will continue to do whatever is necessary to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. As long as I am prime minister of Israel, this will not happen,” he declared.
Israel has maintained a security zone in southern Lebanon since the offensive launched against Hezbollah following attacks by the Iran-backed group on northern Israeli territory during the first days of the war. Since the beginning of negotiations, Tehran has argued that the end of the Israeli military presence in the region is a condition for any understanding with Washington.
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Despite the pressure, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz also stated that troops will remain in Lebanon. The position highlights one of the points of divergence between Netanyahu’s government and the strategy adopted by Trump to end the conflict with Iran.
During the negotiations, the American president even expressed irritation with Israeli bombings in Beirut, warning that new offensives could compromise the talks. Still, it decided to move forward with the agreement without linking its implementation to the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanese territory. (With international agencies)
