US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has discussed the implementation of the US-backed Trilateral Framework with Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun.
In a statement, the State Department said that Rubio commended the Lebanese government for its “determined effort to reclaim Lebanon’s sovereignty” and “disarm” Hezbollah. He hailed the country for its “move towards peace” after the latest round of Lebanon-Israel talks.
Rubio “commended the courage of the Government of Lebanon, under President Aoun’s leadership, for their determined effort to reclaim Lebanon’s sovereignty, disarm Hezbollah and dismantle its terrorist infrastructure, and move towards peace.”
It is the first trip to Washington by a Lebanese Head of state since Michel Sleiman was received by former US President Barack Obama in 2009. The Lebanese President’s office said that Aoun would meet Donald Trump on Tuesday.
Aoun, who served as the Commander of Lebanon’s US-backed army before being elected president last year, will reportedly present a plan to Trump on how to disarm Hezbollah and secure Israel’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon. Hezbollah has firmly rejected the government’s direct talks with Israel and efforts by the state, which it operates independently of, to strip it of its arms.
As well as killing killing many Lebanese civilians in airstrikes across the country, the Israeli military has destroyed dozens of villages in the areas it occupies, something Human Rights Watch said could amount to a war crime. Hundreds of thousands of Lebanese people remain displaced from their homes.Israel has occupied large swathes of south Lebanon in what it calls a “security zone” and says it is trying to protect its northern communities from the threat of Hezbollah.
Lebanon was drawn into the war when Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel on 2 March to avenge the US-Israeli killing of Iran’s former supreme leader in Tehran in late February.
Rubio Reaffirms US’s Commitment To Supporting Implementation Of Framework
The US State Department added in a statement that Rubio reaffirmed the US’s commitment to supporting the implementation of the framework. Aoun said in a statement that a Lebanese-US summit will be held at the White House.
More to come…
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