Lebanon Seeks Reciprocal Steps on Israel Deal Amid Hezbollah Stalemate

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio hosted Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam in Washington on Monday as the US works to advance a peace deal between Beirut and Israel. Negotiations on the US-brokered Israel-Lebanon framework, initially agreed upon in June, have slowed amid continuing Israeli bombing in southern Lebanon despite a supposed ceasefire, while Lebanon has struggled to disarm Hezbollah as required by the deal.

Following the meeting, Mr Salam stated that he looked forward to a “renewed partnership” with the US to help rebuild the state and strengthen its institutions. He urged the US to activate the trilateral framework through a reciprocal and gradual process with a clear timetable, connecting the implementation of the agreement to an Israeli withdrawal and the expansion of Lebanese state authority. The US State Department did not immediately provide a formal report of the meeting.

A central dispute in the negotiations involves the sequencing of the agreement. Lebanon seeks an Israeli withdrawal first, whereas Israel demands the prior disarmament of Hezbollah. Hanin Ghaddar, the Friedmann senior fellow in The Washington Institute's Linda and Tony Rubin Programme on Arab Politics, noted that Israel has already withdrawn from one pilot zone and Lebanon has deployed its army there, meaning the next step of disarmament rests with Lebanon. Although Mr Salam did not mention disarmament directly, he referred to the “confinement of arms to the hands of the state” and the “exclusivity of arms.”

Ms Ghaddar added that the Iran-backed group is currently significantly diminished in strength but remains deeply embedded within Lebanese state institutions, noting that Washington needs to adopt a more active verification mechanism and utilize sanctions. Meanwhile, Lebanese Finance Minister Yassine Jaber also visited Washington to meet International Monetary Fund managing director Kristalina Georgieva, seeking a new staff-level agreement following years of economic crisis. Mr Jaber and Mr Salam also met US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who urged the Lebanese government to disrupt Iranian and Hizballah financial networks and advance financial sector reforms.