Public Affairs Officer at the US Embassy in Beirut Ryan Gliha told MTV on Thursday that US Deputy Assistant and National Security Advisor for Homeland Security and Counter terrorism John Brennan’s statement earlier in the week—that the US is looking to build up moderate Hezbollah members—was taken out of context.

“Washington’s position toward Hezbollah remains unchanged,” he added.

The United States considers Hezbollah to be a terrorist group, and some experts consider it a bigger potential threat to the United States than Al-Qaeda.