After the withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon in April 2006, Hezbollah felt compelled to join the government to ensure a balance between the various Lebanese forces and protect Lebanon’s vulnerable position in the regional equation. This paper by the head of Hezbollah’s main think tank, asserts that the movement is determined to abide by Lebanon’s democratic political system based on the rule of consensus, and to support a strong central state, a transformation in the movement’s understanding of the requirements of the Lebanese domestic balance and its appreciation that internal stability is central to its national project if it is to succeed in its pan-Arab and Islamic mission.