The US State Department has approved a potential sale of Medium Tactical Vehicles (MTVs) to Lebanon, a deal worth just over $90 million that the Pentagon says would strengthen the Lebanese Armed Forces’ counterterrorism capabilities.
According to the Pentagon, Beirut had requested the purchase of several types of medium tactical vehicles, including 5-ton M1085A2 MTVs and 2.5-ton M1078A2 MTVs, both without winches, along with spare parts, repair components, personnel training, and related training equipment. The proposed sale also includes technical and logistics support services.
In its notification, the Pentagon said the deal would advance US foreign policy and national security interests by bolstering the capabilities of a partner “that continues to be an important force for political stability and economic progress in the Middle East.”
Washington added that the package would enhance the LAF’s ability to “rapidly engage and defeat perimeter security threats and readily employ counter and anti-terrorism measures.” Strengthening the LAF’s mobility, the Pentagon noted, would also facilitate expanded military-to-military cooperation and operational training between US and Lebanon.
The LAF has been tasked with ensuring the complete disarmament of Iran-backed Hezbollah under the ceasefire agreement reached with Israel and brokered by Washington late last year.
This marks at least the third military support package announced by the Trump administration in recent months. In September, President Donald Trump approved a rare presidential drawdown worth $14.2 million for the LAF, which was followed in October by a $240 million package for both the Lebanese Armed Forces and the Internal Security Forces (ISF). The Pentagon said the PDA would help “build the capability and capacity of the LAF to dismantle weapons caches and military infrastructure of non-state groups, including Hezbollah.”
