Israeli and Lebanese diplomats met Wednesday in Naqoura under U.S. auspices to discuss economic cooperation aimed at stabilizing southern Lebanon near their shared border—the first direct, public engagement between the countries since 1993.

The meeting comes amid rising tensions, including recent Israeli strikes against Hezbollah targets following the assassination of the group’s top military commander, Haytham Ali Tabatabai.

U.S. officials hope the talks will help de-escalate the situation, prevent a resumption of war, and lay the groundwork for joint reconstruction projects, with a long-term vision of a “Trump economic zone” free of Hezbollah and heavy weapons.

The discussions focused on confidence-building and small economic initiatives, while the broader goal remains disarming Hezbollah, with military cooperation continuing through the ceasefire mechanism, Axios has reported.

Both sides agreed to reconvene before the new year with concrete economic proposals, marking a rare moment of direct dialogue facilitated by U.S. diplomacy.