Only the U.S. can force peace in the Middle East and it should pressure Israel, Lebanon foreign minister says

• Bou Habib said he supported the positions of some European countries that have stopped sending weapons to Israel, and that he felt the U.S. should stop arming Israel as well.
• Washington remains Israel's primary foreign backer, sending it roughly $4 billion annually in military aid, which constitutes about 16% of Israel's defense budget.

Lebanon's foreign minister called on the U.S. to pressure Israel and bring an end to its bloody war with Palestinian militant group Hamas, which has now entered its fifth month.

Speaking to CNBC on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, Abdallah Bou Habib stressed that establishing a pathway to peace was essential, and that Washington is in a position to lead the way.

"We want peace, I think the Palestinians are ready for peace and Americans should — [they are] the only country that can really enable peace," Bou Habib told CNBC's Silvia Amaro. "But they should exert some pressure over Israel like what happened in the 70s, Kissinger was there, and he exerted pressure on Israel to do the peace."

The minister was referencing former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger's history-making diplomatic push in 1973, during the so-called Yom Kippur war between Israel and a coalition of Arab states. After six whirlwind trips to the region, Kissinger managed to pressure Israel to withdraw from some of the Arab territory it had occupied, as both a means of military disengagement and also within the context of Israeli security.

Bou Habib said he supported the positions of some European countries that have stopped sending weapons to Israel, and that he felt the U.S. should also stop arming the country.

Washington remains Israel's primary foreign backer, sending it roughly $4 billion