For the first time in decades, decisions of war and peace are in the hands of the Lebanese state - analysis

The meeting at the US State Department in Washington, DC, saw Israeli Ambassador to Washington Yechiel Leiter meet face-to-face with Lebanon's Ambassador to the US, Nada Hamadeh Moawad, in the first major high-level engagement between the governments of Israel and Lebanon since 1993.

"This is a historic opportunity," said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who mediated the talks. "We understand we are working with decades of history and complexities that have led us to this unique moment and the opportunity here. I know some of you are shouting questions about ceasefires; this is a lot more than just about that. This is about bringing a permanent end to 20 or 30 years of Hezbollah's influence in this part of the world," he added."This is a process, not an event. This is more than just one day. This will take time, but we believe it is worth this endeavor. And it's a historic gathering that we hope to build on," he noted.

Leiter commented optimistically on the talks as well. "We discovered today that we're on the same side of the equation. And that's the most positive thing we could have come away with. We are both united in liberating Lebanon from an occupation power dominated by Iran called Hezbollah," he said.

Lebanese Ambassador Moawad described the preliminary meeting as positive and told Lebanese media that she called for a ceasefire, for displaced people to return to their homes, and for ensuring full state sovereignty over all Lebanese lands.

Both ambassadors said there will be another meeting, without disclosing its date or location.

"We're working on the agreement on every front, on the security front, and on the civil front to try to achieve together a complete peace treaty so that the moment we have the security issue solved, we can take the peace treaty and embark on a harmonious relationship like we have with the other Abraham Accord countries," Leiter further revealed.

But the road to peace is long and filled with obstacles.

As the meeting was taking place in Washington, Hezbollah continued launching drones and rockets at northern Israel. And the IDF carried out strikes in southern Lebanon.

In the absence of a ceasefire, the Lebanese government will continue to be challenged by Hezbollah and its supporters over its willingness to engage Israel directly, with the threat of a civil war looming.

Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem condemned the talks, arguing that the government has no right to engage in direct negotiations without a broader national consensus.

"We refuse negotiations with the Israeli entity. These negotiations are futile, and these talks need a Lebanese consensus changing the position from no negotiations to direct negotiations. Nobody has the right to take Lebanon on this path without internal agreement among its components, and this did not happen."

With no end in sight for the IDF's operation against Hezbollah, pressure on Beirut will continue. And even once a ceasefire is reached, Israeli forces will remain in Lebanese territory for the foreseeable future.

But Beirut won't be left alone to manage these mounting pressures.

The US says it will provide Beirut with humanitarian aid and financial assistance to the Lebanese Armed Forces.

And Saudi Arabia, which along with other Gulf countries has held back on providing Lebanon with much-needed aid for reconstruction, is preparing a move behind the scenes to support Lebanon in its efforts to marginalize Hezbollah.

And so, while peace, and not even a ceasefire, will be achieved in a single meeting, what's important is that the process has begun, breaking many years of taboos.

And for the first time in decades, decisions of war and peace are returning to the hands of the Lebanese state.

There is still a long way to go, but the Israel-Lebanon peace train has left the station.