The US government believes that Israel has achieved some important goals in its war against the Lebanese Hezbollah, and that the end of the war may be near.

"What we have seen is that Israel has achieved a number of important objectives," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said at a news conference in Washington on Wednesday.

“We have seen Israel, over the last two months, be very effective in clearing out Hezbollah infrastructure near the border, and that is why we believe we are in a place where we can reach a diplomatic solution now,” Miller added.

Meanwhile, US envoy Amos Hochstein has arrived in Israel, where he is scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to media reports.

Hochstein, who came from Beirut, is expected to present a draft US agreement for a ceasefire and an end to the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Hochstein is scheduled to meet with Netanyahu on Thursday, according to media outlets, including Haaretz.

Hezbollah reportedly views the US proposal as a basis for future negotiations.

On Wednesday, Hochstein said that talks on a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah had made further progress after discussions he had with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, who is negotiating on behalf of Hezbollah.

"The meeting on Wednesday built on the meeting on Tuesday and made further progress," Hochstein added.

According to Lebanese security sources, the American proposal stipulates that Israel and Hezbollah will initially cease hostilities for 60 days. During this period, the Israeli army is scheduled to withdraw from Lebanon, and the Lebanese armed forces will deploy along the border.

If the ceasefire holds, Israel and Lebanon are expected to hold negotiations within 60 days on the full implementation of UN Resolution 1701, issued 18 years ago.

The resolution gives sole authority to the Lebanese army and UN peacekeeping forces in areas south of the Litani River, which is about 30 kilometres from the actual border with Israel.