EU sets up three-year advisory mission for Lebanon's military and security forces

European Union foreign ministers adopted a decision on Monday to establish a new support mission in Lebanon. According to the Council of the EU, the mission will carry an initial mandate of three years. Its stated purpose is to advise and assist the country's military and internal security forces.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the mission will work with the Lebanese Armed Forces and Internal Security Forces to strengthen territorial control, border security and internal security. In a statement announcing the decision, she added that Europe is invested in Lebanon's future. Reuters reported the development, which it described as a developing story.

The decision was adopted at the level of EU foreign ministers, placing the bloc's support for Lebanon's security institutions under a formal mission framework. The mission's mandate focuses on three areas named by the EU: territorial control, border security and internal security.

Kallas, identified in photo credits as European Commission Vice-President, appeared at a press conference in Beirut alongside Lebanon's Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji, photographed on October 8, 2026. The Lebanese Armed Forces and the Internal Security Forces are the two bodies the EU mission is tasked with advising and assisting.