AMNA NAWAZ: For more on the wider war, we turn now to Barbara Leaf.

She was assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs during the Biden administration.

She's now a senior international policy adviser at the law firm Arnold & Porter.

Barbara Leaf, welcome back to the "News Hour."

Let's start with that meeting today here in Washington between the Israeli ambassador and Lebanese ambassador hosted by U.S.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

How significant was that meeting today between these two parties?

BARBARA LEAF, Former U.S.

Assistant Secretary of State: Well, on the one hand it is significant, but it's significant more in symbolic terms than in substantive terms.

I found it interesting that Secretary Rubio said at the front end of the meeting that he emphasized that it was -- this was the start of a process, not just a single meeting.

That was not even the framing that the U.S.

accorded the Islamabad talks over the weekend.

But, in fact, this is a very fragile start.

AMNA NAWAZ: Well, we know Lebanese officials have been asking for this kind of a meeting for a while.

What's your understanding of why this happened now?

BARBARA LEAF: Well, I think, look, in fact, it was an important way to off-ramp a very volatile issue for the talks over the weekend in Islamabad.

In fact, leading from Wednesday all the way through to Saturday, when the two sides actually finally sat down, there was a great deal of volatility about the question of whether the cease-fire would hold and whether the Iranians would, in fact, show up because of this dispute that went on for days over whether or not Lebanon was supposed to have been agreed to be part of the cease-fire region, if you will.

And the U.S.

eventually took the position alongside Israel that it was not part of the deal, although, strangely, the Pakistani foreign minister said that it was.

AMNA NAWAZ: Well, we know Israel says that it continues to fight the war in Lebanon, that it has a stated goal of disarming Hezbollah, right, of removing them from any position of power and influence there.

The Israeli ambassador even said after the meeting that he called it a crushing victory over Hezbollah.

What about for Lebanese officials?

What is the goal for them here?

BARBARA LEAF: Well, look, it's true that President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam have been asking since early March, since the onset of the war, and the devastating campaign, Israeli campaign, in Lebanon, they have been asking for direct negotiations or discussions with Israel hosted by the U.S.

or supported by the U.S.

And Israel had waved that off.

But given this friction point that the campaign in Lebanon was providing to the main game, the effort to bring an end to the war, a negotiated end to the war with Iran, the U.S.

did essentially lean on the Israelis for this off-ramp.

And you see in the statement that was issued sort of the variance of goals, if you will.

The ambassador, Lebanese ambassador, had no room to negotiate.

She simply was there to show up to show the goodwill of the Lebanese government.

But she has absolutely no leeway to negotiate over the terms of disarmament.

And, indeed, disarmament is really a political task.

It's not going to be achieved from the air or through ground incursions.

AMNA NAWAZ: Well, help us understand that, that tension a little bit more, because we have seen the Lebanese president in the past make very clear, at least rhetorically, that Hezbollah is not the state, that they believe that the armed force should only reside with the state, not with a militia group, a militant group like Hezbollah.

What is that tension on the ground?

Why has it been so difficult for them to contain or control or disarm Hezbollah?

BARBARA LEAF: The tension on the ground is pretty simple.

Hezbollah has overwhelming means to coerce, to threaten, and actually to kill those who would stand in its way, whether they are in uniform, as Lebanese armed forces, or they are politicians.

And they have a -- Hezbollah has a very bloody track record of tracking people down and their families and killing them, punishing them through coercive means.

The task for the Lebanese government is really, as I said, a political one.

And it would eventually be also going in and taking arms.

But, in the first instance, the Lebanese government has to corral the political chieftains of the Lebanese political camp, spectrum and, most importantly, the speaker of the Parliament, Nabih Berri, who, as head of Amal -- Amal is the non-Hezbollah Shia party that is closely aligned and supportive of Hezbollah.

And Nabih Berri has been key to Hezbollah's ability to regenerate financially and otherwise.

And so the Lebanese government has its job to do, but it will need help from the U.S.

and it will need help of a different kind from Israel.

AMNA NAWAZ: In the minute or so we have left, what can and should be, in your view, the U.S.

role in all of this moving forward?

BARBARA LEAF: Well, look, the thing that concerns me is that every day of this really ferocious military assault on Hezbollah targets accrues more and more civilian casualties.

And it undermines the standing of the Lebanese government.

They are made to look more -- weaker and weaker and unable to do anything.

The other thing is, if the U.S.

is really serious about this being the start of a process, Secretary Marco is going to have to put together a team and develop some real staff and leadership commitments to it.

And, frankly, given the really dire state of the State Department, the ranks of the Foreign Service and civil service, I think that's a very hard call.

AMNA NAWAZ: That's former Assistant Secretary of State Barbara Leaf joining us tonight.

Barbara, thank you so much.

Good to speak with you.

BARBARA LEAF: Thank you.