Lebanon: Joint Foreign Ministers' Statement, 14 April 2026
Foreign ministers from Australia, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Iceland, Luxembourg, Malta, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom call for Lebanon to be included in regional de-escalation efforts and urge all parties to work toward a lasting political solution, warning that continuing war risks destabilizing the region. They welcome President Aoun’s initiative to open direct talks with Israel, with Israel’s agreement to negotiations facilitated by the United States, and urge both sides to seize the opportunity, while they stand ready to support negotiations and de-escalation amid the US-Iran ceasefire context. They condemn Hezbollah’s attacks on Israel and the Israeli strikes on Lebanon on 8 April, stress civilian and UNIFIL protection under international law, and reaffirm Lebanon’s sovereignty and full implementation of UNSC resolution 1701. They express solidarity with the Lebanese people, offer emergency assistance to more than one million displaced, and commend Beirut’s ban on Hezbollah’s military activities and the reinforcements of state authority and its sole monopoly on weapons, urging swift implementation.
Statement on Lebanon by the Foreign Ministers of Australia, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Iceland, Luxembourg, Malta, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.
We, Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Australia, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Iceland, Luxembourg, Malta, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom, call for the inclusion of Lebanon in the regional de-escalation efforts and urge all parties to work toward a lasting political solution. The continuation of the war in Lebanon puts at risks the current regional de-escalation, which we have welcomed and must be fully respected by all parties.
We welcome the initiative by President Aoun to open direct talks with Israel and the acceptance by Israel to start the talks facilitated by the United States. We call on both parties to seize this opportunity. Direct negotiations can pave the way to bring lasting security for Lebanon and Israel as well as the region. We stand ready to support them. We therefore call upon all parties to urgently deescalate and seize the opportunity offered by the ceasefire between the United States and Iran.
We condemn in the strongest terms the attacks of Hezbollah against Israel which must cease immediately. We also condemn in the strongest terms the massive Israeli strikes on Lebanon conducted on 8 April which, according to the latest information shared by the Lebanese authorities, resulted in the death of more than 350 persons and wounded more than 1000. Civilians and civilian infrastructure must be protected in accordance with international humanitarian law.
We also condemn in the strongest terms the attacks against UNIFIL and we reiterate that the safety and security of UN peacekeepers must be ensured at all times.
We express our full solidarity and our steadfast support for the Lebanese people and authorities. We stand ready to provide emergency assistance to the more than one million displaced persons in Lebanon, in coordination with the Lebanese government.
We reaffirm the importance of respecting for Lebanon’s territorial integrity and sovereignty and for the full implementation of United Nations Security Council resolution 1701 (2006). We will continue to support the Lebanese state to exercise its full sovereignty over the whole Lebanese territory. In this context, we commend the decision of the Lebanese government to ban Hezbollah’s military activities, as well as its decision to reinforce the full imposition of state authority over Beirut and to have the sole monopoly on weapons, and we encourage full and swift implementation.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/lebanon-joint-foreign-ministers-statement-14-april-2026
