Israeli and Lebanese representatives are scheduled to reconvene in Washington on Thursday for a second round of ambassador-level discussions, a Reuters News report said on Monday. The United States will host the meeting at the Department of State, a U.S. State Department spokesperson told Reuters.
The follow-up talks will come after an initial session held on April 14, which was hosted by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and brought together Israel's ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter, and Lebanon's ambassador to Washington, Nada Moawad. That April meeting was noted as the first direct talks between Israel and Lebanon in decades.
The U.S. State Department spokesperson framed the American role as facilitative. In comments recounted by Reuters, the spokesperson said the United States intends to continue enabling direct, good-faith discussions between the two governments as they pursue these exchanges.
"We will continue to facilitate direct, good-faith discussions between the two governments," the spokesperson told Reuters.
The second round will also represent the first conversation between the two countries since a 10-day ceasefire took effect on Thursday. Beyond the scheduling and venue, details on the agenda and expected outcomes for the Washington talks were not provided in the report.
While officials have characterized the meetings at the ambassador level, the report did not supply further information on whether additional delegations or technical teams will participate, nor did it outline any timelines for subsequent engagement.
Context and immediate facts
- Second round of ambassador-level talks to take place in Washington on Thursday, hosted at the U.S. Department of State.
- First direct meeting occurred on April 14, hosted by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, between Israeli ambassador Yechiel Leiter and Lebanese ambassador Nada Moawad.
- The upcoming session is the first exchange since a 10-day ceasefire took effect on Thursday.
Information published in the report was attributed to a U.S. State Department spokesperson and to a Reuters News account; the report did not extend additional details about the scope or specific goals of the talks.