Syrian FM Meets Hezbollah Ally as US Presses Lebanon Track

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani met President Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri in Beirut Thursday, putting a Hezbollah ally at the center of Lebanon's response to the U.S.-Israel-Lebanon framework. The visit followed President Trump's suggestion that Syria could help confront Hezbollah; Shaibani said the Hezbollah file was not discussed with Berri, but Damascus was open to a meeting if Syrian interests required it. Aoun and Salam framed the trip around stability, economic and security coordination and a joint committee. Israel should treat the diplomacy as useful only if it helps disarm Hezbollah, not if it grants Damascus or Beirut a veto over northern security.