US envoy says no one will keep negotiating with Lebanon without real progress
Tom Barrack says President Donald Trump doesn’t have ‘patience,’ adding he expects ‘breakthrough’ with Lebanese government to disarm Hezbollah
BEIRUT
US Ambassador to Türkiye and Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack warned that negotiations with Lebanon on Hezbollah’s disarmament will not continue unless real progress is made.
“Nobody is going to stick around doing this until next May,” Barrack said in an interview with LBCI. “I have a boss who has amazing courage, amazing focus, who came out globally…What he doesn't have is patience.”
He said the US isn’t making demands, only offering help if Lebanon wants it.
“We've only said one thing: if you want us to help you, we're here to usher, we're here to help. We're here to protect to the extent that we can. But we're not going to intervene in regime change. We're not going to intervene in politics. And if you don't want us, no problem, we'll go home,” he said.
Barrack met with President Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri in Beirut.
He called Lebanon’s official response to a US proposal delivered on June 19 to disarm the Hezbollah group a success just by not being leaked and described his meetings with Lebanese officials as “honest and candid.”
On the disarmament of Hezbollah, Barrack reiterated that the goal is “one nation, one people, one army.”
He said disarmament efforts must include all armed groups, including Hezbollah, Palestinians and armed militias.
He praised the Lebanese Armed Forces' role in the south as “heroic,” calling the LAF “the accepted, neutral medium that everybody accepts.”
Returning in two weeks, he said he expects “a breakthrough,” even if not all parties support it.
“That would be a miracle. And our commitment is to force this to that conclusion.”
“The timeframe is shortening,” he said. “The world is changing around us, and this opportunity that we have with all of the neighborhood is going to vanish.”
“So some people take advantage of it. Syria is taking advantage of it. Lebanon, decide what you want to do, take advantage of it, or stay in this fall,” he added.
Prime Minister Salam announced Monday that ideas were discussed with Barrack for a synchronized process that would link Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanese territory to the disarmament of the Hezbollah group.
A senior Lebanese official, speaking to Anadolu on July 2 on condition of anonymity, said Barrack’s proposal spans five pages and focuses on three main areas.
The first concerns disarmament and restricting weapons to the state. The second addresses financial and economic reforms, border control, customs enforcement and tighter regulation of public crossings and facilities. The third involves repairing ties with neighboring Syria, including border demarcation and enhanced trade and political coordination.
Cross-border warfare between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon escalated into a full-scale war in September 2024. Despite a November ceasefire, Israeli forces have conducted near-daily attacks in southern Lebanon claiming to target Hezbollah’s activities.
Since then, Lebanese authorities have reported nearly 3,000 Israeli violations of the truce, including the deaths of at least 232 people and injuries to more than 530.
Under the ceasefire deal, Israel was supposed to fully withdraw from southern Lebanon by Jan. 26, but the deadline was extended to Feb. 18 after Tel Aviv refused to comply.
Israel still maintains a military presence at five border outposts.
