Mitsotakis says Lebanese Army must lead after UNIFIL’s December exit
Aoun met separately with Greek President Konstantinos Tasoulas and Prime Minister Mitsotakis in Athens, framing Lebanon’s stability as a precondition for Europe’s. “The stability of the region and Lebanon is essential to the stability of Greece and Europe,” Aoun said, warning that Lebanese instability would carry “negative repercussions across the region.”
The framework accord, reached June 26 between Lebanon and Israel, “cannot be implemented by one side alone,” Aoun said. He called on Greece “to provide as much assistance as possible” to ensure the agreement is honored “in full and without selectivity” by both parties.
Aoun said the war, which began on Oct. 8, 2023, when Hezbollah opened a support front for Gaza, had achieved no results. “Solving the problem through military force has not worked and will not work,” he said. “The best way to address the problems we face is through diplomacy. We are advocates of peace and are determined to end the state of hostility with Israel and build the best possible relations with our neighbors.”
Lebanon’s Health Ministry reported that Israel’s military campaign had killed 8,915 people and wounded 30,543 since Oct. 8, 2023, including 4,352 killed and 12,318 wounded since March. The ministry said the campaign had caused “massive destruction to property and infrastructure,” with some 70 border villages in southern Lebanon “reduced to rubble and rendered uninhabitable.”
Talks between Aoun and Mitsotakis centered on the post-UNIFIL phase and “how to help prevent a security vacuum.” Mitsotakis said the Lebanese Army must play “a central and fundamental role,” with European and international support and a presence to help ensure security. “We consider security essential, but individual support alone is not enough,” Mitsotakis said, expressing Greece’s readiness to support “every effort towards de-escalation,” help with Lebanon’s reconstruction and provide “greater” assistance to the Lebanese Army.
Mitsotakis said a strong Lebanon requires “a strong state, with a central government that safeguards the security of all its citizens,” and stressed “the particular importance” of preserving Lebanon’s multicultural character and protecting its Christian communities. Tasoulas said Greece would use its EU presidency, beginning in January 2027, to consolidate and deepen relations between Lebanon and the EU.
Both leaders said the Eastern Mediterranean must move “from a region of tensions and conflicts to one of peace, cooperation and mutual understanding.” Mitsotakis pointed to “energy bridges and joint infrastructure projects” linking the region to Europe. Aoun said the two countries share interests in energy, transport and the freedom of global trade, and described the Mediterranean as “a sea that unites people” with “no room for extremism.”