The Media Line: US Says Aoun-Netanyahu Meeting Could Help Restore Lebanese Control in the South 

US Says Aoun-Netanyahu Meeting Could Help Restore Lebanese Control in the South 

By The Media Line Staff 

The United States urged Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Thursday to meet directly with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying a US-facilitated meeting could help secure an Israeli military withdrawal from southern Lebanon and restore Lebanese state control there. 

The appeal came from the US Embassy in Lebanon as Washington presses Beirut and Jerusalem to move from a fragile ceasefire with Hezbollah toward a more durable security arrangement. The embassy said, “A direct meeting between President Aoun and Prime Minister Netanyahu, facilitated by President Trump, would give Lebanon the chance to secure concrete guarantees on full sovereignty, territorial integrity, secure borders, humanitarian and reconstruction support, and the complete restoration of Lebanese state authority over every inch of its territory—guaranteed by the United States.” 

The statement also said that Lebanon stood “at a crossroads,” adding that direct engagement with Israel “can mark the beginning of a national revival.” 

Lebanon and Israel have no formal diplomatic relations and remain technically at war. A 1949 armistice agreement has long governed the border framework, while Hezbollah’s military presence in southern Lebanon has been a repeated source of conflict with Israel. Israel has said its operations in Lebanon are aimed at preventing Hezbollah from rebuilding positions near the border and threatening northern Israeli communities. 

The US push comes as Lebanon’s leadership remains divided over talks with Israel. Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam have shown interest in negotiations that could stabilize the border and restore state authority, while Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally, has opposed normalization and pushed instead for a narrower nonaggression arrangement. 

President Donald Trump has said he wants to host Netanyahu and Aoun, and US officials have described Lebanon’s disarmament of Hezbollah as central to any lasting deal. For Lebanon, the central demands are an Israeli pullout, prisoner releases, reconstruction aid, and control over the south by the Lebanese state rather than Hezbollah.