Key Takeaways
- Lebanese President Joseph Aoun will visit the White House for the first time this week.
- Aoun aims to present a plan to US President Donald Trump to disarm Hezbollah and secure Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon.
- The meeting comes amid ongoing tensions, with hundreds of thousands displaced due to Israeli strikes.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun is set to make his first trip to the White House this week, where he will meet US President Donald Trump. The visit, scheduled for Tuesday, marks a significant diplomatic engagement between the two leaders and aims to address critical issues such as disarming Hezbollah and securing Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon.
Aoun, who previously served as the commander of Lebanon's U.S.-backed army before being elected president last year, is expected to present Trump with a written proposal on how to decommission Hezbollah’s massive arsenal. His office has stated that Aoun will ask Trump to ‘exert the necessary pressure on Israel’ to implement a U.S.-brokered agreement aimed at disarming Hezbollah and facilitating a progressive Israeli troop withdrawal.
The meeting is particularly timely given the current state of affairs in Lebanon, where Israeli troops continue to occupy parts of southern Lebanon. Additionally, hundreds of thousands of Lebanese remain displaced following recent Israeli strikes. Hezbollah has firmly rejected direct talks with Israel and efforts by the government to strip it of its arms.
Aoun’s visit follows a period of significant geopolitical shifts in the region. His presidency began just before Trump’s second term started, and Aoun is seen as a key figure in Lebanon's sectarian power-sharing system, which requires the prime minister to be Sunni Muslim and the speaker of parliament to be Shi’ite Muslim.
Lebanon's efforts to secure Hezbollah's disarmament have been ongoing. In his swearing-in ceremony last year, Aoun vowed to affirm “the state’s right to a monopoly on arms.” Lebanese troops were deployed in southern Lebanon to collect Hezbollah weapons caches following the 2024 war, with minimal opposition from the weakened group.
However, early into his term's second year, tensions escalated when Hezbollah launched an attack against Israel on March 2. This action triggered a fierce Israeli air and ground campaign that has resulted in significant civilian casualties, according to Lebanon’s health ministry. The toll includes over 4,300 people killed, nearly 800 of whom were children, women, or medics.
A Lebanese official stated that Aoun believes only Trump possesses the leverage needed to pressure Israel into withdrawing its troops and helping Lebanon restore its sovereignty. This visit is seen as a critical opportunity for Aoun to generate international pressure on Israel in support of Lebanon’s interests.
