We’ve watched some horror shows in the Oval Office over the past 18 months, but Tuesday’s visit by Lebanese President Joseph Aoun was a moment to celebrate. Aoun came away with a pledge of support from President Donald Trump that could help rescue his country from a half-century of chaos.
Trump’s foreign policy decisions often draw brickbats from commentators, and he deserves much of the criticism. But on Lebanon, he has been rock-solid. He pushed Aoun to embrace a plan to disarm Hezbollah, despite fears in Beirut that it might trigger civil war. And he pressured Israel to begin a troop withdrawal that could allow Aoun and the Lebanese Armed Forces to reclaim the country’s sovereignty at last.
For once, Trump wasn’t the biggest guy in the room. Aoun is a bald-headed bull of a man, who looks like the gentle giant people root for in a professional wrestling match. Trump obviously likes and trusts him. Lebanon needs support from two strong presidents to survive — one in Beirut and one in Washington. For the moment, it has both.
Trump often portrays himself as a victim of unfair attacks, and on Tuesday he seemed to identify personally with Lebanon’s plight. “It has been a very badly treated place and country, and we’re going to have it … treated with the respect it deserves,” Trump said. “We’re going to solve a lot of problems.”
The U.S. commitment is likely to mean more money and weapons for the LAF, as the army is known, and financial support for Lebanese reconstruction. But the hardest part will be standing up to Israel, which has grown accustomed over five decades to bombing or invading its northern neighbor at will. If Trump doesn’t restrain future Israeli operations, Aoun’s domestic support will collapse.
The hard question for Aoun is whether he can keep his army and nation together during the gradual process of disarming Hezbollah — regaining a monopoly of force over the Iranian-backed militia that has operated as a state within a state. “The LAF is ready,” he promised at a small gathering at the Lebanese embassy Monday. In theory, there will be a “mechanism” through which Israel will alert Lebanon to Hezbollah operations — and Aoun will intervene. If the LAF can’t stop Hezbollah’s rockets, we’re back to square one.
I’ve watched as Aoun gained confidence and popular support over the past two years. We met in Beirut in December 2024, when he was the LAF commander and Israel was still waging all-out war against Hezbollah. A few weeks later, with American support, the Lebanese parliament elected him president. He got off to a slow start in curbing Hezbollah, but he has gathered momentum.
Saving Lebanon is not a project for the fainthearted. President Ronald Reagan tried it in 1982, sending U.S. Marines to bolster security after an ill-managed Israeli invasion to drive out the Palestine Liberation Organization. But when Iranian-backed terrorists struck the U.S. Embassy and Marine barracks the next year, Reagan quickly pulled out — and the era of Hezbollah domination began. The LAF mostly stayed in its barracks over the next several decades.
“Give us the tools and we will finish the job,” Aoun said at the embassy event, echoing Winston Churchill’s plea for American support against Nazi Germany. Aoun should now have more of the tools he needs. He’s a tough leader, but he’s fighting in an arena that could suddenly become a firepit. This time, America won’t send in troops. It will be on Aoun.
People who, like me, have dreamed that Lebanon can somehow regain its sovereignty want to believe that Aoun is truly ready for this battle. But we won’t know for sure until Lebanese troops are in their first firefight with Hezbollah. Wrestling this battered country back from ruin won’t be easy, but I’m rooting for the Lebanese bull.
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