France Denies Reports It Proposed Plan to End Israel-Hezbollah War, Says Role Limited to Facilitating Dialogue
France denied reports it proposed a plan to end the Israel–Hezbollah war, saying its role is limited to facilitating dialogue between the parties.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - France has denied having any specific plan to end the war between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, emphasizing that its role is limited to facilitating direct dialogue between the parties rather than imposing conditions or frameworks.
On Saturday, the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that Paris supports the position expressed by Lebanese authorities regarding the possibility of holding direct talks with Israel.
The ministry noted that France had offered to facilitate such dialogue but stressed that determining the agenda of those negotiations remains solely in the hands of the parties involved in the conflict.
The statement came in response to a report published by the US outlet Axios, which cited three sources claiming that Paris had prepared a proposal aimed at ending the war.
According to the Axios report, the alleged French proposal included Lebanon recognizing the state of Israel and launching negotiations with the backing of the United States and France.
The report also suggested the talks would aim to reach a political declaration within one month that could lead to a permanent agreement preventing future attacks between the two sides.
Axios further reported that the proposal included deploying the Lebanese army south of the Litani River and disarming Hezbollah in exchange for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from areas they had taken control of during the war.
However, France officially rejected the claim that it had any plan of that nature.
Separately, and within the same context, a Lebanese official told Agence France-Presse that the government in Beirut is preparing a delegation to hold negotiations with Israel.
The aim of the talks, according to the official, is to seek an end to the war that erupted between Israel and Hezbollah.
France reiterated that its role remains limited to facilitating dialogue, while discussions about potential negotiations continue to emerge amid the ongoing war.