Bangladesh, Jan. 15 -- More than a year after a fragile ceasefire halted large-scale hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel, Lebanon finds itself in an unfamiliar position: cautiously moving forward while still standing on unstable ground. The war has not formally ended, Israeli violations persist, and Hezbollah has not disarmed. Yet, despite these unresolved dangers, Lebanon is taking hesitant but meaningful steps toward restoring a semblance of normal statehood. In a country long defined by paralysis, even incremental progress represents a notable shift.

At the center of this tentative transition stands President Joseph Aoun, whose first year in office has been marked less by dramatic breakthroughs than by measured restraint. Togethe...