Lebanese President welcomes French post-Unifil talks on visit to Paris

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun welcomed a French-Italian initiative to replace the UN's Unifil mission in southern Lebanon, amidst concerns over a possible Israeli offensive. Aoun met with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris, where they joined King Abdullah II of Jordan in a high-profile gathering of military officials from Arab and European nations.

The objective was to establish a framework for a multinational mission to succeed Unifil upon its planned withdrawal later this year. Macron praised the initiative, initiated by French President and Italian Prime Minister, aimed at addressing the post-Unifil mandate phase. The meeting took place under the Aqaba framework, launched in 2015 by King Abdullah to foster regional military and security cooperation.

Macron also held separate discussions with Aoun and King Abdullah prior to the group's meeting at the Invalides military complex in Paris. The agenda included the Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon and the faltering US-brokered diplomatic talks between Israel and Lebanon. Both presidents discussed measures to prevent Israeli aggression, focusing on the June ceasefire and the framework agreement.

Paris and Amman separately signed a defense agreement, according to King Abdullah. The leaders expressed their commitment to maintaining stability in Lebanon and the region. The French and Italian governments are leading efforts to replace Unifil, which is set to leave after five decades of deployment due to US and Israeli pressure.

The 10 EU nations are prepared to contribute to a new military and civilian mission to advise and train the Lebanese Armed Forces. Aoun affirmed Lebanon's openness to any force replacing Unifil to prevent a security vacuum and emphasized the need for a security agreement with Israel to end the ongoing hostilities stemming from the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.