⭕️ Macron backs Saudi-hosted conference to equip Lebanese Army for Hezbollah disarmament
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French President Emmanuel Macron announced support for a Saudi-hosted conference aimed at bolstering the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) as it takes on the controversial mission of disarming Hezbollah. Macron told the UN General Assembly that Lebanon would “breathe easier” once Hezbollah’s weapons were handed over to the LAF.

A French source confirmed to Breaking Defense that the meeting, expected before the end of 2025, will include Gulf, Arab, European, Commonwealth countries, and the US. France signaled readiness to provide advanced capabilities, including radars for air defense systems, while the conference may also extend aid to Lebanon’s Internal Security Forces.

The initiative comes as UNIFIL’s mandate nears expiry after nearly five decades, and amid past Saudi-Lebanese tensions that led Riyadh to cancel a $3 billion aid package in 2016. It follows France’s 2024 donor conference that raised $200 million for the LAF, and a new $14.2 million US package announced this month to supply explosives and equipment to dismantle Hezbollah’s weapons infrastructure. Hezbollah has repeatedly rejected the disarmament plan outright.

(Breaking Defense)