Germany FM calls for diplomatic solution to fighting on visit to Beirut

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has called for a diplomatic solution to the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel.

Baerbock, upon her arrival Wednesday in Beirut, said that “we must now work with our partners in the USA, Europe and the Arab world to find a viable diplomatic solution that safeguards the legitimate security interests of both Israel and Lebanon.”

The foreign minister warned that “a complete destabilization of the country would be fatal for the most religiously diverse society of all states in the Middle East and also for the entire region.”

Baerbock said that "Lebanon is on the brink of collapse".

She also asked all parties involved in the conflict to protect the United Nations peacekeeper troops stationed in the Israeli-Lebanese border region. "Any deliberate attack on U.N. peacekeepers violates international humanitarian law," she said.

Baerbock is on her 12th visit to the region since Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.