According to reports from AFP, French President Emmanuel Macron announced during a joint press conference with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on June 25 in Antibes, France, that "we aim to launch a coalition for the post-UNIFIL era in coordination with the European Union and the United Nations." He added that the new coalition would focus on strengthening Lebanon's sovereignty and its military.
Prime Minister Meloni emphasized that the new multinational coalition would prevent a resurgence of regional tensions, stating, "International deployment is essential to avoid an extremely dangerous security vacuum."
UNIFIL currently consists of about 7,500 peacekeepers from approximately 50 countries, operating in southern Lebanon. The United Nations Security Council extended UNIFIL's mandate last year until December 31, 2026, after which troops are to be withdrawn over the course of a year.
France and Italy are major troop contributors to UNIFIL. Both countries believe that a separate cooperative structure is necessary to support the deployment of the Lebanese military in the south and border monitoring after the existing UN peacekeeping framework concludes.
During their meeting, the two leaders also signed agreements on defense cooperation centered around the joint air defense system 'SAMP-T', as well as on nuclear energy collaboration and a European satellite project.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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