Trump Says He Would Talk With Hezbollah if Aoun Asked

President Donald Trump said he would speak with Iran-backed Hezbollah if Lebanese President Joseph Aoun asked him to do so. Speaking alongside Aoun in the Oval Office, Trump said he talks with people others advise him to avoid and added that he would also speak with Israel at Aoun’s request. The remarks came during the first White House visit by a Lebanese president since 2009, as Washington works to advance the June 26 Israel-Lebanon framework. That framework calls for Hezbollah’s disarmament, Lebanese army control in the south and phased Israeli withdrawals; Aoun said its final goal is ending hostility between Lebanon and Israel.