Iran is losing control of Syria and Lebanon as the Lebanese state grows stronger and Hezbollah weaker. Syria's new leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, has expressed his intention to distance Syria from Iranian influence and reduce Iranian militias. In Lebanon, the newly elected president, Joseph Khalil Aoun, has begun to assert the sovereignty of the Lebanese state and has broached the topic of disarming Hezbollah. Iran's dominant influence in Lebanon and its use of Syria as a military hub for supplying Hezbollah are coming to an end. The new Syrian administration is favoring an independent and regionally integrated approach, showing little enthusiasm for opening bilateral relations with Iran.