JERUSALEM (VINnews) — Officials in Jerusalem and Beirut are closely watching developments emerging from Switzerland. Following talks between the United States and Iran in Switzerland, Qatar and Pakistan announced that an agreement had been reached to establish a “de-escalation cell” in Lebanon, involving the United States, Iran, and Lebanon. Israel was not mentioned in the announcement, nor was Hezbollah.

According to the official statement, the mechanism is intended to ensure compliance with the cessation of military activity in Lebanon and prevent renewed escalation. Sources familiar with the matter describe the cell as a coordination mechanism designed to reduce the risk of escalation and unintended incidents.

However, both Israel and Lebanon are following these developments with concern and trying to understand their practical implications. Sources familiar with the issue say that neither side was informed in advance about the details of the understandings reached in Switzerland. Officials in Jerusalem and Beirut are now attempting to determine whether this is merely a technical mechanism or part of a broader move that could grant Iran a new level of legitimacy in the Lebanese arena.

Israeli officials reportedly believe there was no practical way to include Israel in such a framework because of Iran’s involvement. Nevertheless, the very fact that Tehran is becoming an official participant in an international mechanism dealing with Lebanon raises serious questions.

Concerns are also being voiced in Lebanon that the understandings between Washington and Tehran could create a parallel track to the one being conducted with Israel and limit the maneuvering room of the Lebanese government and the Lebanese Armed Forces. From the perspective of Lebanese officials, bringing Iran into an official framework concerning Lebanon could strengthen Tehran’s position precisely when the Lebanese Army is being called upon to demonstrate independence and operational capability in southern Lebanon.

Meanwhile, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun convened a meeting at the Baabda Presidential Palace attended by Lebanese Army Commander General Rodolphe Haykal and members of the advisory team accompanying the Lebanese-American-Israeli negotiations in Washington. The meeting focused on discussions being conducted by the Lebanese diplomatic and military delegation during the fifth round of talks.

At the opening of the meeting, Aoun stressed that Lebanon would accept nothing less than what he described as an end to the “Israeli occupation” and an end to “external tutelage” alike. According to him, Lebanon’s only acceptable path is full national sovereignty, with the Lebanese state serving as the sole legitimate authority. He argued that only the state should protect all citizens, safeguard their freedoms and dignity, and free them from fear and discrimination.

At the same time, a representative of the Lebanese political party “Lebanon Forces”,Samir Geagea, stated that U.S. Vice President J. D. Vance had clarified in a response to a letter from Geagea that American contacts with Iran regarding Lebanon are not intended to give Tehran a role in determining Lebanon’s future.

In the coming days, it should become clearer whether the Washington talks can produce a practical framework for the proposed pilot arrangement in southern Lebanon. But for both Israel and Lebanon, a broader question is already on the table: whether the “deescalation mechanism” agreed upon in Switzerland signals a change in Iran’s status within the Lebanese arena, and how it may affect the diplomatic process that the United States is attempting to advance between Israel and Lebanon.