President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran arrived here on Wednesday morning and was given an ecstatic welcome by supporters of Hezbollah, the militant Shiite movement his country backs, the New York Times reported.

Thousands of cheering supporters thronged the road that leads from Beirut’s airport to the city, waving Iranian flags, throwing flowers, and chanting greetings in Persian as Mr. Ahmadinejad’s convoy slowly passed.

American officials voiced their disapproval last week of Mr. Ahmadinejad’s visit, which seems timed to embolden Hezbollah and underscore Tehran’s broader influence in Lebanon.

After his arrival, Mr. Ahmadinejad appeared at a news conference alongside the Lebanese president, Michel Suleiman, announcing several bilateral agreements on energy, water, and other issues. Iran, which has long provided arms and training to Hezbollah, has also offered repeatedly to help equip the Lebanese Army if the United States cuts off its military aid here. Iranian money was crucial to the rebuilding effort after the 2006 war with Israel, an array of reconstruction projects directed by Hezbollah but whose benefits — apartment blocks and roads — were not limited to its followers.

On Thursday, the Iranian president plans to visit southern Lebanon — near the Israeli border — in a trip aimed at highlighting Iranian support for Hezbollah’s armed struggle with Israel. The Israeli daily Haaretz reported that Israel had asked the United States, France, and the United Nations to pass on the message that it viewed Mr. Ahmadinejad’s planned visit to southern Lebanon as a provocation.

Read more in the New York Times.