Few Israelis know Lebanon like former prime minister Ehud Barak. A soldier for 36 years before turning to politics, he at one time disguised himself as a woman during a commando assassination operation against Palestinian militants in Beirut; 27 years later, as his country's leader, he made the landmark decision to withdraw troops after two decades of occupation of south Lebanon.
As rockets fired by Hezbollah guerillas again rain down on Israel and troops from the Jewish state pour into Lebanon, Mr Barak is far removed from the action, retired from the military and no longer in politics. That does not mean, though, that he does not have a strategy to counter the latest threat or bring about peace with his nation's adversaries.
This is, after all, the man who played a pivotal role in planning what has become known as the most perfectly executed special forces operation in history - the rescue of hostages from a hijacked plane at Uganda's Entebbe airport in 1976. Such people are rare, so his words could be deemed to be ones of wisdom, especially when on matters close to his - also read Israel's - heart.
There was no need for his renowned bravery as he faced this reporter's questioning and a photographer's constant camera flashes last Tuesday evening at a Hong Kong hotel while on a stopover to Singapore. Nonetheless, he was cool under fire, offering grapes from a bowl on the table, perhaps as a gesture of peace, maybe to test whether he was dealing with a friend or foe.
Satisfied that he was among allies, Mr Barak, 64, launched into his theory that the latest conflict with Hezbollah - prompted by the group's firing of rockets from bases in south Lebanon and kidnapping of two soldiers - had long been planned. But although the Hezbollah Israel was now fighting was the same group that declared a truce in 2000, circumstances had changed substantially.
He said that since the terrorist attacks in the US on September 11, 2001, the militia had become part of a wider fabric of intertwined global challenges -terrorism, nuclear proliferation and rogue states.