U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa urged Israel and Lebanon to proceed cautiously ahead of the seventh round of direct negotiations between the two countries, which is scheduled to take place in Rome, according to i24NEWS.

Issa said significant technical work remains before the trilateral agreement reached in June can be fully implemented, stressing that protecting the populations affected by the process must remain the top priority.

“There is a fundamental difference between signing an agreement and its concrete implementation,” Issa said. “Moving too quickly would risk endangering the populations that this process is meant to protect.”

The envoy said a gradual rollout would allow both sides to ensure that the agreement is being implemented effectively before expanding it to additional areas.

Under the June agreement, the Lebanese Armed Forces are to deploy in several areas of southern Lebanon that were previously under Hezbollah’s influence, while Israel is expected to withdraw from the security zones, with the Iran-backed terrorist group to be disarmed.

Israel has already completed an initial withdrawal from a pilot zone in southern Lebanon. Lebanese officials, however, have accused Israel of obstructing the deployment of Lebanese troops in the area, an allegation Israel has denied as tensions continue ahead of the next round of talks in Rome.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)