White House: Trump and Macron Agree on the Need to Counter Hezbollah and Iran's Actions

The White House states that the President of the United States and his French counterpart discussed the situation in Lebanon and Syria on Saturday, November 18, and agreed on the necessity to counter Iran's and Hezbollah's "destabilizing actions." Reuters and AFP, citing the White House statement, report that Donald Trump and Emmanuel Macron have agreed on the need for cooperation with regional allies to address Iran's and Hezbollah's destabilizing activities. AFP has reported that Macron also spoke by phone with the President of Egypt, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, and the UN Secretary-General regarding the "situation in the Middle East." The White House statement comes as Saad Hariri, the Prime Minister of Lebanon, has traveled from Saudi Arabia to France, where he met with Macron and is expected to return to Lebanon soon. Paris has recently intensified its criticism of Tehran, which has drawn reactions from Iranian officials. On Thursday, Jean-Yves Le Drian, the French Foreign Minister, alongside the Saudi Foreign Minister, stated that Paris is against Iran's "interventions" and "hegemonic" intentions in the region. Following this, the Iranian Foreign Ministry accused the Élysée of having a "one-sided and biased" approach to crises in the Middle East. However, the French President stated on Friday that his government's positions in the Middle East are "balanced" and added that Paris does not take sides in the conflict between Shiites and Sunnis. Macron also described Iran's actions in the region as very concerning and mentioned that "there is a possibility of sanctions against Iran's missile program." Ali Akbar Velayati, an advisor to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic on international affairs, accused the French President of "interfering in Tehran's affairs" and stated, "We do not seek permission from others regarding our defense issues and whether we should have missiles or not." Resolution 2231 of the Security Council, which effectively endorsed the nuclear agreement between Iran and six world powers, calls on Iran to refrain from developing ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads. The United States claims that Iran is not adhering to the spirit of the nuclear agreement, and Donald Trump has also refrained from certifying Tehran's compliance with the JCPOA. However, the Islamic Republic rejects these accusations, stating that its missile tests are "defensive" and cannot be designed to carry nuclear warheads in the absence of a nuclear military program. Alongside this issue and the escalating tensions in West Asia, while many believe that Riyadh and Tehran are engaged in proxy wars from Syria to Yemen, the situation in Lebanon has also become another challenge. Saad Hariri, the Prime Minister of Lebanon, who is considered a critic of Tehran's policies and Hezbollah, unexpectedly announced his resignation during a televised speech in Saudi Arabia on November 4. Following that, various speculations arose regarding the reasons for his resignation while in Saudi Arabia and his remaining in that country. Senior Lebanese officials, including the President, and Sigmar Gabriel, the German Foreign Minister, stated that Hariri is in Saudi Arabia against his will and is not allowed to leave, which was met with a strong reaction from Saudi Arabia, and Hariri denied it. Ultimately, on November 18, Hariri traveled to France and met with the French President. After this meeting, he appeared before reporters and stated, "I will be present on Independence Day in Lebanon, and after meeting with Michel Aoun, I will announce my political position from Lebanon." In this context, Macron stated that Iran has a misunderstanding regarding France's positions in the Middle East. Saudi Arabia summoned its ambassador in protest against the German Foreign Minister's remarks. Velayati responded to France, stating that we do not seek permission from others for our country's defense program. Hariri and Macron's meeting in Paris; Hariri is set to return to Lebanon on Wednesday.