In a significant breakthrough, Israel and Lebanon have agreed to hold direct negotiations following “productive discussions” in Washington, the United States said on Tuesday.
US State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said that participants agreed to launch direct talks “at a mutually agreed time and venue” after preliminary discussions on how to move forward.
“The participants held productive discussions on steps toward launching direct negotiations between Israel and Lebanon. All sides agreed to launch direct negotiations at a mutually agreed time and venue,” he said in a statement.
#WATCH | Washington DC | US Secretary of State Marco Rubio joins working-level peace talks with Israeli Ambassador to the United States Yechiel Leiter and Lebanese
Ambassador to the United States Nada Hamadeh Moawad at the Department of State
(Source: State TV via Reuters) pic.twitter.com/WolLgtDLXa
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The agreement was reached after a trilateral meeting hosted by the United States, marking a potential step towards easing tensions along the border. The meeting, mediated by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, was described as a “historic opportunity” to lay the groundwork for lasting peace despite decades of hostility between the two countries.
“This is a historic opportunity,” Rubio said as he welcomed the ambassadors, acknowledging the “decades of history” complicating the process.
“The hope today is that we can outline a framework upon which a current and lasting peace can be developed.”
Israeli Ambassador Yechiel Leiter called the talks a “wonderful exchange” and said that the two countries are “on the same side” in opposing Iran-backed Hezbollah.
“We enjoyed it together. We had a wonderful exchange of over two hours,” Israeli Ambassador Yechiel Leiter told reporters following the talks. “We discovered today that we’re on the same side,” he said, adding, “We are both united in liberating Lebanon from (an) occupation power dominated by Iran called Hezbollah.”
On the Lebanese side, Ambassador Nada Hamadeh Moawad described the meeting as “constructive” and stressed the need for a ceasefire, the return of displaced civilians, and full Lebanese sovereignty over its territory.
The “preparatory meeting was constructive”, the envoy’s statement said, adding that she “called for a ceasefire” and the return of displaced people to their homes, and also emphasised “the full sovereignty of the state” over all Lebanese territory.
The two countries have technically been at war for decades, and Tuesday’s talks have been vehemently opposed by the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, which announced that it had fired rockets at more than a dozen northern Israeli towns as the meeting was getting underway.
The United States is pressing for a halt to the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, fearing it could derail the two-week ceasefire in Washington’s war with Iran after talks with Tehran in Pakistan failed to achieve a breakthrough.
Lebanon was pulled into the broader conflict when Hezbollah attacked Israel in support of its backer Iran, sparking an Israeli ground invasion and strikes that have killed more than 2,000 people and displaced over a million.
(With inputs from agencies)
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