The memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Iran again shows Tehran's leaders are better negotiators than fighters, former Israeli Ambassador to the United States Danny Ayalon told Newsmax on Sunday.
Appearing on "Sunday Report" with co-hosts Bill Spadea and Krysia Lenzo, Ayalon said Iran has successfully linked negotiations over its nuclear program and the Strait of Hormuz to the future of Hezbollah in Lebanon, complicating efforts to permanently weaken the Iranian-backed terrorist group.
"You know that President [Donald] Trump has said, and rightly so, that the Iranians are better negotiators than they are fighters," Ayalon said. "This is true, as again manifested through this agreement."
The former Israeli ambassador praised Secretary of State Marco Rubio for brokering a framework agreement aimed at easing tensions between Israel and Lebanon, calling it "a real coup for American diplomacy."
Ayalon said the United States, Israel, Lebanon and the broader Western alliance share a common objective of restoring Lebanon's sovereignty by ending Hezbollah's dominance over the country.
"The people of Lebanon, the government of Lebanon, Israel, the United States, the entire Western world have the same interest and the same common goal of bringing Lebanon back to its people," he said. "To take it away as they are held hostage by Iran through its proxy, Hezbollah."
The memorandum of understanding, he added, must now be translated into a detailed agreement if it is to succeed.
Still, Ayalon warned that implementation will be difficult because Iran and Hezbollah are likely to work aggressively to undermine any settlement.
"The Iranians and Hezbollah will do their utmost to derail it through their terrorism, through their incitement, through their intimidation of the people of Lebanon and the government of Lebanon," he said.
To counter those efforts, Ayalon argued the Lebanese government and military must receive sufficient support to confront Hezbollah and enforce the agreement.
He acknowledged that Israel's military possesses the capability to disarm Hezbollah if the terrorist organization refuses to lay down its weapons voluntarily, as required under international agreements.
However, Ayalon said Israel's options are currently constrained by the broader U.S.-Iran understanding, which he argued has allowed Tehran to tie unrelated regional issues together.
"These issues are totally separated," he said, referring to Lebanon and Iran's negotiations. "But they prevailed in putting them together with the linkage."
The Trump administration has sought to reduce regional tensions while maintaining pressure on Tehran over its nuclear ambitions and support for terrorist proxies.
At the same time, Israeli officials have repeatedly insisted Hezbollah must be disarmed to prevent another major conflict along Israel's northern border.
Ayalon said any lasting agreement must require Iran to abandon its nuclear ambitions rather than reward Tehran with diplomatic gains.
"Unfortunately," he said, the current arrangement is "giving Iran a lot of points without them actually adhering or giving the commitments not to ever threaten the entire world with nuclear ambitions."
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