Visiting German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock appealed on Tuesday for restraint in southern Lebanon, warning that a “miscalculation” could provoke a full-scale war between Hezbollah and Israel at any moment.
Berlin has joined Western diplomatic efforts to avert a conflagration in the Middle East, sending its foreign minister to Tel Aviv and Beirut.
Baerbock arrived in the Lebanese capital on Tuesday, following a mission to Israel where she also called for restraint.
On her arrival in Beirut, she held talks with caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib.
The meeting was attended by the German Ambassador to Lebanon, Kurt Georg Stoeckl-Stilfried, and Mikati’s advisors, former Minister Nicolas Nahas and Ambassador Boutros Assaker.
During the talks, the German minister stressed that “all parties must cooperate to defuse the tension on the southern border and achieve a ceasefire in Gaza, which will inevitably lead to a ceasefire in the south.”
She stressed that “the situation along the Blue Line is very delicate and the risks are present.”
For his part, Mikati told his host that “the best way to achieve a return to calm in the south of the country is to put an end to Israeli aggression (…) and to fully implement UN Security Council Resolution 1701.” He also called for a ceasefire in Gaza and a return to the two-state solution.
Mikati also praised “Germany’s active role at a European and international level, and Berlin’s interest in Lebanon.”
A little later, Baerbock wrote on her X account: “With every rocket that crosses the Blue Line, (…) the danger increases that a miscalculation could trigger a war…” She then called once again for “extreme restraint on all sides.”
She also announced, on X, “additional humanitarian aid” worth 18 million euros for Lebanon, notably for food, housing and medical care.
In January, Berlin had promised 15 million euros in aid to the Lebanese Army.
The German diplomat also noted that “millions of refugees pose major challenges” for Lebanon, which is mired in a deep economic crisis.
