Lebanon has conditioned its participation in the next round of negotiations with Israel on Israel’s withdrawal from two designated pilot areas in southern Lebanon, in accordance with the framework agreement signed by the two sides in Washington, a diplomatic source familiar with the talks told Agence France-Presse (AFP) on Wednesday.
Five rounds of U.S.-mediated negotiations have previously been held in Washington. The latest round resulted in the signing of a framework agreement late last month, which provides for the disarmament of Hezbollah, a gradual Israeli withdrawal from areas it entered in southern Lebanon, and the deployment of the Lebanese Armed Forces, beginning with two “pilot areas.”
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the diplomatic source said, “Lebanon is conditioning Israel’s withdrawal from two pilot areas on its participation in the next round of negotiations,” scheduled to take place in Rome on 15–16 July. Lebanon has not yet officially announced whether it will attend.
Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani confirmed on Tuesday that the next round of U.S.-sponsored Lebanon-Israel talks would be held in Rome.
Israel had earlier announced through its ambassador to Washington, Yechiel Leiter, that the negotiations would be held in Rome, a statement later confirmed by Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar.
According to the Lebanese diplomatic source, the U.S. State Department informed both negotiating delegations that reaching the framework agreement marked “the end of one phase and the beginning of another,” adding that, under long-standing U.S. practice, Washington could not host the negotiations indefinitely.
The source explained that the next stage of talks, aimed at reaching a final agreement between the two countries, would require negotiators to consult frequently with their political leadership, something that would be difficult if negotiations continued to take place in Washington because of the geographic distance from decision-making centers in both countries.
According to the source, Israel quickly welcomed the move, seeking to “reduce the pressure the United States exerted on it during the last rounds of negotiations,” particularly through the direct intervention of U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
The source added that contacts with Washington had secured assurances that the United States would maintain “the same level of engagement in the negotiations and the same approach to managing the talks” during the Rome meetings. However, Lebanon has yet to officially confirm its participation, pending “Israel’s withdrawal from the first two pilot areas.”
The framework agreement states that the details of the process will be outlined in a security annex, to be prepared with full U.S. support and serve as a supplement to the agreement. The annex has not yet been made public.
The agreement does not specify a timetable for Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon. Israeli officials have repeatedly stated that Israeli forces will not withdraw from a 10-kilometer-deep security zone in southern Lebanon until Hezbollah, which is backed by Tehran, has been disarmed.
Hezbollah rejects direct negotiations with Israel and opposes the outcomes of such talks, while also refusing to surrender its weapons.
The group drew Lebanon into the conflict on 2 March, when it launched rockets at Israel following the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in the first joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran. Israel responded with an intensive aerial campaign and a ground incursion, during which its forces occupied dozens of towns and villages in southern Lebanon and carried out extensive demolition operations.
AFP
