Paris– French President Emmanuel Macron will reaffirm France’s full commitment to the ceasefire in Lebanon and support for the country’s territorial integrity in a meeting with Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salaam in Paris on Tuesday, Macron’s office said.
this is pakistan Preparation for new round of talks The ceasefire between the US and Iran is set to expire on Wednesday, while that between Lebanon and Israel to hold a new meeting In Washington this weekend.
“Macron and Salam will also discuss humanitarian support for displaced populations and the continuation of the economic and financial reforms necessary to strengthen Lebanon’s sovereignty, its reconstruction and the restoration of its prosperity,” Macron’s office said.
The meeting at the Elysee presidential palace came after a small-arms attack on a UN peacekeeping force, known as UNIFIL, in southern Lebanon on Saturday killed one French peacekeeper and wounded three others, two of them seriously.
Both Macron and UNIFIL forces blamed Hezbollah, but the Lebanese militant group denied involvement.
Macron called on Lebanese authorities to “shed full light on the incident” and to “identify and prosecute those responsible without delay.” “UNIFIL troops should not be targeted under any circumstances,” Macron’s office said.
Earlier on Tuesday, Salam had stopped in Luxembourg for a meeting of EU foreign ministers, which was to discuss the situation in the Middle East.
On March 2, two days after the US and Israel launched war on Iran, Hezbollah entered the fray by firing cross-border missiles. Israel responded with an intense bombing campaign and ground offensive.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun offered direct negotiations with Israel for the first time in decades in exchange for an end to hostilities, an offer that was initially rejected.
This changed after the announcement of a ceasefire between Iran and the United States and talks between the two brokered by Pakistan.
Lebanon and Israel held their first direct diplomatic talks in decades in Washington last week following more than a month of war between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group. Meanwhile, Iran continued to insist that its ceasefire agreement must extend to Lebanon and said it would not reopen the Strait of Hormuz otherwise.
A ceasefire was announced by the US on Thursday between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. The US portrayed the agreement as the outcome of Israel-Lebanon negotiations.
Hezbollah, which is opposed to Lebanon pursuing direct talks with Israel and was not part of those talks, insisted that the ceasefire was the result of Iranian pressure, not the Israel-Lebanon meeting.
