“We would like to keep the French as far away as possible from practically everything,” an Israeli diplomat decided.
( POOL / CHRISTOPHE ENA )
The Israeli ambassador to the United States explained on Tuesday, April 14, that Tel Aviv did not want France to participate in peace negotiations with Lebanon, denouncing Paris’s negative “influence” on the country targeted by an Israeli offensive.
Speaking to the press after direct talks between Israel and Lebanon in Washington, Yechiel Leiter stated: “It is certain that we do not want to see the French interfere in these negotiations.”
“We would like to keep the French as far away as possible from practically everything, but especially when it comes to peace negotiations,” continued the Israeli representative, using undiplomatic terms. He was asked by a journalist if the Israeli government had made a “concerted effort” to keep France out of these negotiations.
Historical ties with Lebanon
“They are not necessary. They have no positive influence, especially not in Lebanon,” he added.
On Tuesday, France joined seventeen countries in calling for Lebanon and Israel to “seize the opportunity” of these direct peace talks under American mediation.
But Paris, with strong historical ties to Lebanon, also pushed to include the Lebanese front in the ceasefire brokered by the United States with Iran, much to Israel’s dismay.
Paris also deemed “intolerable” the Israeli strikes on Lebanon on April 8, which resulted in over 350 deaths and more than 1,200 injuries, and opposed an Israeli ground offensive in Lebanon.
The relationship between President Emmanuel Macron and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is notably strained, especially since France recognized a Palestinian state.
