Lebanon’s Joseph Aoun to meet Trump: What to expect | Hezbollah news

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun is preparing for talks with his US counterpart Donald Trump at the White House on Tuesday, as the government in Beirut pushes for Israel to withdraw from the south and deal with internal divisions.

The meeting comes at a time of danger in the region between the wars between the United States and Iran that could lead to a war between Hezbollah and Israel in Lebanon. Relations between Lebanon and Israel, and the efforts of the Aoun government to disarm Hezbollahwill be at the top of the list.

Here’s what you need to know.

Why is Aoun visiting Washington?

Lebanon’s president has been offering US support to Beirut in pushing for Israel to withdraw from negotiations, and to ensure that Hezbollah is disarmed.

Although Aoun’s critics say that the Lebanese government has no chance to bring it to the talks, the Lebanese government has been counting on Trump’s favor as a guarantee of any agreement.

Aoun’s office has said it wants to translate Washington’s interest in Lebanon into stronger military and economic support for Lebanon. So, Aoun is looking to sign up staunchly pro-Israel Trump’s administration as a supporter of his results.

At the heart of Aoun’s strategy is the three-state plan between Lebanon, Israel and the US, which has been fiercely rejected by Hezbollah.

When did Aoun arrive in the US?

Aoun left Beirut for Washington, DC, on Saturday, where he was received by the US chief of protocol, according to his office.

Who have you met so far?

Aoun met with the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio On Sunday, where he emphasized the importance of aligning the positions of Lebanon and America on the policy “through the benefit of the first withdrawal of Israel from the airport”. The Lebanese president said Aoun also asked Washington to support Lebanese organizations.

What did Rubio say?

Rubio said that supporting the Lebanese government is the best way to stop Hezbollah, which is allied with Iran.

“President Aoun will be able to return to Lebanon and tell the Lebanese people that he is the one who is getting the best results for the people – all Lebanese, including Christians, Sunni, Shia, Bedouin and Druze – all people of a very different country – not Hezbollah, not Iran,” Rubio told reporters.

“He is the legitimate government, he is the one we should work with and that the government is the government that should be in charge of the country.”

What does the framework say?

The agreement establishes a new security and political system for Lebanon. Accordingly, Lebanon recognizes Israel and agrees to withdraw from the country by disarming Hezbollah.

The setting seemed to contradict the memorandum of understanding between Lebanon and Iran, which demanded that Lebanon end the war without justification, and respect the sovereignty of the country and its region.

The US-Lebanon-Israel agreement aims to remove the conflict in Lebanon from the regional context and treat it as its own problem.

It orders the creation of an “airport base” in southern Lebanon, where the Lebanese Army (LAF) will deploy when Israel withdraws to declare Hezbollah’s absence and help build the region.

Why was the frame rejected?

Lebanon’s US-Israeli alliance is widely criticized in Lebanon. Even some supporters of Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam have recognized his weaknesses, while Hezbollah has said it will not follow suit.

Opponents of the plan say it would cede sovereignty to Lebanon, accept the occupation and allow Israel to withdraw – Lebanon’s right guaranteed by the United Nations Charter – under conditions set by the occupying power in Washington.

Activists have also expressed concern over the part of the agreement in which Lebanon commits to not being held accountable for Israeli atrocities in international courts or the UN.

“Israel and Lebanon are committed to taking actions in good faith that reflect good intentions, including a ban on all international political or legal activities,” it said.

What are the flight zones?

In conjunction with Aoun’s visit, the US State Department announced the establishment of the first pilot zone in South Lebanon. The plan sees the areas as test cities without Hezbollah’s military presence, where the LAF can ensure that it is the only military force. Instead, Israel withdrew from the area and allowed the people to return and start building.

But there are many issues and questions that come with this approach, including the right of citizens not to have their property searched by the Lebanese army at the request of Israel. The right of return of Hezbollah members to their homes has also been questioned.

The the first flight center Washington announced on Monday it will not lead to the withdrawal of Israel. It is located in three towns that Israel did not occupy during the war, which eliminates the benefits that Lebanon can gain from such areas.

What is Israel doing in Lebanon?

Israeli officials have publicly stated that their goal in Lebanon is to clear the border towns as they have done in many areas of Gaza. “It was clear … that the Shia villages on the contact line must be destroyed,” Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said last month, praising the progress the Israeli army has made in destroying the towns. Israeli officials have repeatedly emphasized that they will remain in Lebanon if necessary.

However, Israel has declared that it “has no ambitions in Lebanon”.

What did Trump say?

Trump often speaks in support of Lebanon. He refused attack on Israel in Beirut in June, and earlier this month, saying that Israel should withdraw its troops from the country. But it is still unclear whether he will force Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end the occupation of Lebanon.

How did the war between Lebanon and Israel begin?

The latest fighting began in March after Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel in response to its November 2024 ceasefire, and the assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader. Ali Khamenei. But Israel’s invasion of Lebanon preceded Hezbollah by a decade.

Soon after Israel was founded in 1948, its soldiers killed civilians on the Houla border in the Nakba area – the Palestinian exodus that year.

Lebanon and Israel do not have diplomatic relations and their relations are defined by bloodshed and repeated Israeli attacks.

Hezbollah was founded in 1982 with the help of Iran to protect the Israeli army that arrived in Beirut that year in order to expel the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) from the country.

The group says it is justified in its war with Israel without Beirut’s consent under the UN Charter, which provides for the right of self-defense to individuals and nations.