FIUGGI, Italy: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday said efforts to secure a ceasefire in Lebanon were “in the final stages”, and added that a deal could help end the Gaza conflict.
“We’re not there yet, but I believe we are in the final stages,” Blinken told reporters after a meeting near Rome with G7 counterparts, adding that “by de-escalating tensions in the region, it can also help us to end the conflict in Gaza”.
He was speaking as Israel’s security cabinet convened to discuss a proposed ceasefire in its war with Hezbollah in Lebanon, as a flurry of air strikes hit central Beirut.
Blinken said that after months of “intensive diplomatic effort” with partners including France, working with Lebanon and Israel, he hoped to reach a conclusion “very soon”.
“It will make a big difference in saving lives and livelihoods in Lebanon and in Israel.
It will make a big difference in creating the conditions that will allow people to return to their home safely in northern Israel and in southern Lebanon,” he said.
“And I also believe that by de-escalating tensions in the region, it can also help us to end the conflict in Gaza in particular.”
“Hamas will know that it can’t count on other fronts opening up in the war. So we’re tracking this very closely, and I hope and believe that we can get this over the finish line.”
The G7 — Britain, Germany, France, Canada, Japan, Italy and the United States — had also discussed aims to end the Gaza war, Blinken said.
He said “we are in the final stages” of the Lebanon ceasefire negotiations, stressing that the agreement on the table will save lives in Lebanon and Israel.
The Biden administration is committed to working with the Trump transition team in order to ensure the implementation of the Lebanon deal, he says when asked.
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According to Blinken, the ceasefire deal ensures the “effective implementation” of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which was passed in 2006 to end the Second Lebanon War by forcing Hezbollah to disarm and retreat beyond the Litani River, 18 miles north of the border with Israel.
The new deal being finalized envisions the Lebanese army deploying into southern Lebanon along with the UNIFIL observer mission and a new oversight mechanism, Blinken says.
Blinken also says that G7 and Arab counterparts are in agreement on working to bring the war in Gaza to an end through the release of all hostages and the surging of humanitarian aid into the Strip, “now that Israel has achieved its strategic goals in the wake of October 7.”
“We agreed with our Arab partners that we cannot end the conflict without a plan for the post conflict — something that we’re working on intensely as we speak,” he says.
The US has long expressed frustration with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for refusing to advance this effort and for rejecting initiatives involving the Palestinian Authority. – Agencies
