Khaberni - The German Foreign Minister proposed today, Friday, the deployment of a European Union military force as a replacement for the United Nations mission in Lebanon.
In doing so, the German Minister suggests replacing the force that has been on the ground since 1978, which is scheduled to end its mission by the end of this year.
A German official told the Deutschland media network: "In the European Union, we need to consider the possibility of ensuring that no security vacuum arises after the UNIFIL mission ends. This could facilitate the conditions for the withdrawal of the Israeli army, without Hezbollah's return... We Europeans must do everything in our power to ensure that this process continues positively."
The United Nations Security Council decided in August 2025 to fully end the UNIFIL mission. After the mission ends, the Lebanese army will take over, following a trial phase during which German forces will vacate only two areas of the security zone in favor of the Lebanese army. According to Reuters news agency, the German armed forces also participate in UNIFIL, with the German Navy providing assistance in the maritime field off the coast of Lebanon to prevent arms smuggling and training the Lebanese Navy.
The statement from the German Minister comes after a new round of talks between Israel and Lebanon this week. So far, this round has not made any noteworthy progress, as Lebanon continues to insist on expediting the Israeli withdrawal from the south of the country, while Israel insists that there will be no complete withdrawal as long as Hezbollah retains weapons in the area.
