At a sensitive political and diplomatic moment, the American Task Force on Lebanon (ATFL) is intensifying its engagement in Beirut, in a notable push that extends beyond the current visit by its Board of Directors and comes directly after a delegation of bipartisan U.S. congressional staffers, organized by ATFL, visited Lebanon signaling an increasing pace of engagement between Beirut and Washington through the organization.

The ATFL Board’s visit has included meetings at senior official, political, security, and economic levels, putting some of the most sensitive issues in U.S.-Lebanon relations on the table, from sovereignty, security, and the role of the Lebanese Armed Forces to reforms, investment, and Lebanese-Israeli negotiations.

The visit takes on particular significance given ATFL’s role in Washington. An independent, nonpartisan American organization, ATFL works to strengthen relations between the United States and Lebanon and engages with U.S. policymakers on issues related to the country.

From the U.S. Embassy to Baabda and the Grand Serail

The ATFL Board began its first day with a briefing at the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, where U.S. Ambassador Michel Issa and other officials provided an overview of the key challenges facing Lebanon and U.S. policy priorities.

From the embassy, the delegation proceeded to meetings with President Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, and several Cabinet ministers.

Discussions focused on Lebanon’s political, security, and economic priorities, foremost among them state sovereignty, ongoing Lebanese-Israeli negotiations, strengthening state institutions, regional stability, reforms, and U.S.-Lebanon relations.

These issues are consistent with the positions ATFL has advocated in recent months, placing support for Lebanese state authority and institutions, economic reform, and the restoration of confidence at the heart of its approach, alongside continued U.S. engagement and support for the Lebanese Armed Forces.

Economy and Investment Also on the Table

The visit was not limited to political and security issues. The ATFL Board also held a roundtable discussion with leading figures from Lebanon’s private sector, focusing on the current business climate and proposals for attracting international investment to Lebanon.

This dimension carries particular significance for a Washington-based organization, as ATFL places economic recovery, reform, and good governance among its core priorities, alongside security, sovereignty, and U.S.-Lebanon relations.

The first day concluded with a dinner hosted by ATFL Vice Chairman Nijad Fares.

Yarzeh... The Army at the Heart of the Equation

On the second day, attention shifted once again to security, as the Board met with Lebanese Armed Forces Commander General Rodolphe Haykal.

Discussions addressed the implementation of the ceasefire agreement, Lebanese Armed Forces operations, and ways in which the United States can support and strengthen the military and Lebanese state authority.

Support for the Lebanese Armed Forces occupies a central place in ATFL’s approach to Lebanon. The organization considers the military a key pillar of stability and the extension of state authority and has consistently advocated continued U.S. support for it.

From Parliament to Political Leaders and Universities

The second day’s meetings extended beyond the military. The delegation met with Deputy Speaker of Parliament Elias Bou Saab and the heads of several parliamentary committees to discuss parliamentary affairs and the security challenges facing Lebanon amid ongoing developments in the south.

Board members also participated in a working lunch with American University of Beirut President Fadlo Khuri, devoted to discussing the state of higher education in Lebanon and the region.

The political outreach later expanded to include a meeting with former Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt, where discussions covered Lebanon’s political and security landscape, regional developments, and U.S.-Lebanon relations. The delegation then met with Kataeb Party leader Samy Gemayel for talks centered on political and security issues and state sovereignty.

Ain el-Tineh... Negotiations and the South

In another significant political stop during ATFL’s engagement, the organization’s delegation met with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, with discussions addressing Lebanese-Israeli negotiations, the trilateral framework, and issues related to southern Lebanon.

ATFL President and former U.S. Ambassador Edward Gabriel spoke after the meeting about a range of issues, including the ceasefire, steps related to the south, and the return of displaced people to their communities.

The meeting with Berri carries additional significance given his role in issues related to southern Lebanon and negotiations, particularly as ATFL has promoted an approach linking stability with sovereignty, stronger state institutions, and support for the Lebanese Armed Forces.

Before the Board Visit... Four Days with Congressional Staffers

The ATFL Board’s visit did not take place in isolation from the organization’s immediately preceding activity. The previous week, ATFL organized a four-day visit to Lebanon by a bipartisan delegation of staffers from both the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate.

The visit gave them an opportunity to engage directly with Lebanese officials, politicians, military and economic leaders, and representatives of civil society.

The delegation met with U.S. Ambassador Michel Issa as well as U.S. military and diplomatic leadership. It also held meetings with advisers to President Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, and met with Lebanese Armed Forces Commander General Rodolphe Haykal and a number of ministers and members of Parliament.

The delegation also met with Central Bank Governor Karim Souaid to discuss challenges facing Lebanon’s financial and banking sectors, monetary stability, the path toward economic recovery and reform, and restoring investor confidence. It also met with Finance Minister Yassine Jaber to discuss financial-sector reform, public debt, the state budget, and international assistance.

The congressional staffers also met with State Security Director General Major General Edgar Lawandos and Public Works and Transport Minister Fayez Rasamny, in addition to political and parliamentary figures and representatives of the private sector, civil society, and humanitarian organizations.

From Amchit to Byblos... A Firsthand Look at U.S. Support

The congressional staff delegation’s visit was not limited to political meetings. On its final day, members met with independent figures and activists to discuss state-building, challenges facing economic reforms, civilian protection, and reconstruction.

The delegation then traveled to Amchit to assess firsthand the impact of U.S. security assistance on Lebanese Armed Forces readiness, border security, counterterrorism capabilities, and Lebanese state authority.

It later traveled to Byblos, where members visited the Lebanese American University campus and participated in a roundtable discussion with U.S. scholarship recipients and university leadership to learn about the impact of U.S. assistance to higher education institutions.

The itinerary also included cultural stops in Byblos and at the Sursock Museum in Beirut before concluding with a farewell dinner hosted by ATFL, during which participants reflected on the key takeaways from the visit, discussed their implications for U.S. policy toward Lebanon, and identified priorities for follow-up.

In his assessment of the visit, Edward Gabriel noted that the delegation included Republican and Democratic staffers from both the House and Senate and that the trip allowed them to listen, learn, and exchange perspectives with Lebanese leaders representing different viewpoints. He said participants were united by a shared vision of a more prosperous and sovereign future for Lebanon.

Two Consecutive Visits... Why Now?

The broader picture becomes more significant when the two visits are viewed together. Within a short period, ATFL first hosted U.S. congressional staffers and then brought its Board of Directors into an extensive series of meetings across Lebanon.

This sequence illustrates the role the organization is seeking to play  not simply conveying U.S. perspectives to Beirut, but also giving individuals working within the U.S. legislative branch an opportunity to gain firsthand insight into Lebanon’s realities, while keeping channels of communication open through ATFL’s Board and its network in the United States.

More Than a Public Relations Tour

The significance of ATFL’s engagement, therefore, lies not merely in the number or diversity of officials its delegations have met. Together, the two visits form a network of engagement extending from the U.S. Embassy and Lebanon’s constitutional and security institutions to the financial and private sectors, universities, and civil society.

Across these meetings, a clear set of issues repeatedly emerges: state sovereignty, support for the Lebanese Armed Forces, southern Lebanon and the ceasefire, financial and economic reform, restoring investor confidence, and strengthening U.S.-Lebanon relations.

This is precisely where ATFL’s intended role comes into focus: serving as a bridge between the Lebanese-American community and decision-making circles in Washington and Beirut.

From Baabda and the Grand Serail to Ain el-Tineh and Yarzeh, and from the congressional staff delegation to the ATFL Board’s visit, the message appears to extend beyond a series of protocol meetings: Lebanon remains part of a multi-level policy discussion in the United States, while ATFL seeks to turn what its visitors hear firsthand in Beirut into material for discussion and follow-up in Washington at a potentially pivotal moment for the future course of relations between the two countries.

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