President Donald Trump has pledged support for Lebanon, saying that the US would to help the country “a lot.”
Trump made the remarks during a White House meeting with the Lebanon’s leader, Joseph Aoun, who came to push for long-term calm after months of war between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group. The meeting wraps up Aoun’s four-day visit to Washington.
“It’s been a very badly treated place and country and we’re going to have it properly treated and treated with the respect it deserves. We’re gonna help it a lot.”
Donald Trump
Lebanon hopes the talks result in Israeli troops withdrawing from large swaths of southern Lebanon that they currently occupy, and the Lebanese military receiving support to assert full control in areas where Hezbollah militants had held sway. Trump said of Israel’s army fully withdrawing from Lebanon, “They’re in the process of doing that. They’re in the process of redeploying” but didn’t elaborate.
Trump noted that “There’s a Hezbollah problem” in Lebanon and suggested that he personally could speak with Hezbollah if Aoun wanted him to. He also floated the idea of having Syria intervene to fight Hezbollah, though didn’t fully commit to that.
Additionally, Trump said that he would “take care of” the Houthi rebels if the Iran-backed militant group follows through on its threatened blockade of Saudi ports. “If something like that happens, we take care of it,” Trump told reporters during a White House meeting with Lebanese president Joseph Aoun. “You know, we’ve done that with the Houthis before, and we haven’t heard from them in a while since we did what we did originally,” he added.
Trump asserted that the United States will continue attacks on Iran, while forecasting it would take the country more than 20 years to rebuild from current damage. “If we left right now, it would take Iran 20, 25 years to rebuild. Okay, and we’re not finished at all…we’re not leaving right now,” he told reporters during the White House meeting with the Lebanese President.
Aoun Hails Trump’s Peace Efforts
On his part, Aoun told Trump, “Your vision is peace,” calling it Trump’s “legacy.” The U.S. President responded by joking, “I do agree with that” and said Aoun was handsome and “knows how to get to me,” adding, “Now he can have anything.”
The Lebanese President also urged his US counterpart Donald Trump to maintain American support for his country’s military, warning that southern Lebanon could see a return of the chaos of the 1970s without Washington’s backing. “We don’t want to see that back again. All we’re asking is, keep supporting the LAF,” Aoun told reporters of the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) during a White House meeting with Trump. He added, “All we’re asking is, keep supporting the LAF… I fully trust the LAF. I fully trust the leadership of the LAF.”
Meanwhile, Israeli officials, have said that they plan to keep military forces long-term in a “security zone” in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah has dismissed the U.S.-brokered direct talks and instead backed Washington’s talks with its key ally and patron Iran to end their war, which includes ending the war in Lebanon as a condition.
Lebanon’s government came to power on a reformist platform in early 2025, vowing to disarm all non-state groups including Hezbollah. It blames Hezbollah for dragging the country into another war with Israel in March, when the militant group fired several rockets toward northern Israel two days after the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran.
Beirut’s leadership, however, has condemned Israel’s subsequent ground invasion and massive aerial campaign in the country, which has killed over 4,000 people and displaced 1.2 million others.
While grappling with stark political opposition from Hezbollah and allies within the deeply divided country, Lebanon’s leadership insists that Israeli withdrawal and international financial support for Lebanon’s cash-strapped army is crucial for a sustainable security solution.
READ ALSO: Original Koffee Announces Sophomore Album Release Scheduled for November 2026
