Lebanese President Joseph Aoun met U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz on Wednesday in Baabda, where he stressed that it was "essential to end the Israeli occupation" on the Lebanese-Israeli border. On Tuesday, the Israeli army withdrew from the last villages in south Lebanon, but its troops remain positioned on "five strategic points," due to their elevation, along the Blue Line.

"It is essential to end the Israeli occupation of the remaining points and finalize the implementation of the Nov. 27, 2024, agreement to strengthen stability in the south and enforce United Nations resolution 1701," Aoun told Waltz, as reported by the Lebanese presidency. He also called for "accelerating the release of Lebanese prisoners held in Israel."

The cease-fire agreement that came into effect on Nov. 27 ended two months of open war between Israel and Hezbollah, during which Israeli troops took positions in southern Lebanon. The agreement stipulated that Israel would complete its withdrawal from the southern sector by Jan. 26 – a deadline later extended to Feb. 18 – where only the Lebanese army and U.N. peacekeepers are to be deployed. Hezbollah was to dismantle its military infrastructures and withdraw north of the Litani River, about 30 kilometers from the Israeli border. However, Israel announced on Monday that it intended to "provisionally leave a limited number of soldiers deployed at five strategic points along the Lebanese border." The U.N. warned on Tuesday that any delay in the Israeli withdrawal would constitute a violation of Security Council resolution 1701, which ended a previous war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006 and forms the basis of the current truce agreement.

According to the Lebanese presidency, Waltz, whose country is the guarantor of the cease-fire agreement's terms between Lebanon and Israel, assured President Aoun that "the American administration is closely monitoring developments in the south, following the partial withdrawal of Israeli forces and their continued occupation of several border points."

Waltz also praised the role played by "the Lebanese Army, which has deployed in positions vacated by the Israelis," stating that the United States "is committed to Lebanon to work towards consolidating the cease-fire and resolving outstanding issues through diplomacy." The American advisor emphasized "the importance of the Lebanese-American partnership and the need to strengthen it in all areas."