Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with the U.S. ambassadors to Lebanon and Israel to discuss the upcoming eighth round of negotiations, before Beirut received a formal invitation to the talks.
Netanyahu held the meeting with Michel Issa, U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon, and Mike Huckabee, U.S. Ambassador to Israel, in Jerusalem. The two ambassadors play a central role in managing communications between Beirut and Tel Aviv.
According to Israeli media reports, the meeting covered the anticipated negotiations with Lebanon at a time when their schedule remains unclear. September 15 and 16 have circulated as possible dates for the round, but a Lebanese official source said Beirut has not yet received a formal date from the American sponsor.
An American official said the talks have not been delayed and both sides remain engaged in constructive dialogue, expecting the new round to take place later in September according to plans set weeks earlier.
The United States describes so-called test areas as the practical path to reaching long-term arrangements and links their success to progress on disarming militias and deploying the Lebanese army.
Israel enters the round holding military cards across the south, from the territory it controls to the heights of Ali al-Tahir, and continues demolition, excavation and airstrikes without providing guarantees of stopping them or a timeline for withdrawal.
The significance of Netanyahu's meeting with the American ambassadors raises questions about whether the goal was solely to set Rome's date or to formulate conditions to be conveyed to the Lebanese side, and whether a map of actual Israeli withdrawal was discussed or whether Beirut will be asked for additional steps before receiving any commitment in return.
