Beirut Offers 'Technical' Incentives for Talks with Tel Aviv, Awaits Response

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

54% : Although Israel has yet to signal readiness for talks, Beirut has presented what officials describe as a "technical incentive" aimed at reviving diplomacy.
52% : Lebanese army soldiers aboard military vehicles near the Blue Line border with Israel in southern Lebanon (EPA) US envoy to Lebanon and Syria Tom Barrack has said that Israel is ready to reach a border agreement with Lebanon, urging Lebanese leaders to "join the negotiations and safeguard their sovereignty.
50% : Addressing the Manama Dialogue security forum on Saturday, Barrack said that Israel is ready to reach an agreement with Lebanon, adding that the Lebanese must join the negotiations and protect their borders.
50% : Officials say this approach draws on Lebanon's previous experience in the maritime border talks with Israel between October 2020 and October 2022, when a technical delegation participated in indirect negotiations hosted by the United Nations in Naqoura under US mediation.
49% : " Yet Israel has not responded to Lebanese President Joseph Aoun's initiative to launch talks, which includes a new incentive: preliminary approval for adding civilian technical experts to Lebanon's military delegation should the need arise.
46% : He cautioned that Israel may respond inside Lebanon depending on developments.
46% : Lebanon's official stance rules out any direct negotiations with Israel or the participation of political or diplomatic figures, confining the process to military representatives.
39% : Barrack said Lebanon's leadership must act more decisively to contain Hezbollah's weapons, insisting that there will be no problem between Lebanon and Israel once Hezbollah is disarmed.
37% : This format satisfies Hezbollah, which rejects direct engagement, while Israel has pushed for talks led by political or diplomatic officials to broaden their scope beyond technical and security issues.
33% : He noted that Hezbollah earns more money than the Lebanese Armed Forces and that thousands of rockets in southern Lebanon continue to threaten Israel.

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