Bangladesh, July 22 -- When Lebanese President Joseph Aoun walks into the Oval Office on July 21, he will make history as the first sitting Lebanese head of state to be officially received at the White House in 17 years. The last Lebanese president to do so was Michel Sleiman, who met then-US President Barack Obama in 2009. The visit is symbolically significant, reflecting renewed American engagement with Lebanon at a time of extraordinary regional uncertainty. Yet beyond the historic photographs and diplomatic protocol lies a far more difficult question: can this meeting produce tangible progress, or will it simply reinforce Lebanon's growing dependence on promises that remain unfulfilled?

Aoun arrives in Washington carrying the politi...