ShareBEIRUT: Lebanon has secured its “full rights” in the latest text drafted by US mediators to demarcate the maritime border with the Zionist entity, its lead negotiator said Tuesday, after the Zionist entity said it met its terms too. “Lebanon has obtained its full rights, and all of its remarks have been taken into account,” said lead negotiator Elias Bou Saab, the deputy speaker of parliament, after handing the draft to President Michel Aoun. “Today we have come to a solution that satisfies both parties.”
“(The Zionist entity) and Lebanon have reached an historic agreement settling the maritime dispute,” said a statement from Zionist Prime Minister Yair Lapid’s office. The welcome for the text on both sides of the border has raised hopes that years of negotiations have finally borne fruit, allowing cash-strapped Lebanon to develop potentially lucrative offshore gas reserves. Bou Saab said he hoped an agreement could be signed before Aoun’s term of office ends on Oct 31.
Lebanon and the Zionist entity are officially at war and their land border is patrolled by UN peacekeepers. They reopened negotiations on their maritime border in 2020, but the process was stalled by Lebanon’s demand that the map used by the United Nations in the talks be modified. The negotiations resumed in early June after the Zionist entity moved a production vessel near the Karish offshore field.
The US text has not been made public but under terms leaked to the press, all of the Karish field would fall under Zionist control, while another potential gas field, Qana, would be divided but its exploitation would be under Lebanon’s control. French company TotalEnergies would be licensed to search for gas in the Qana field, and the Zionist entity would receive a share of future revenues. Bou Saab said Lebanon will “get its full rights from the Qana field”, and the Zionist entity might receive compensation through TotalEnergies. There will be no direct partnership in gas exploration or exploitation between the two enemy states, he said.
Zionist Defense Minister Benny Gantz commended the Lebanese presidency for backing the accord, which he described as “positive for both sides”. Gantz criticized Hezbollah, which he said “attempted to destroy the process” with its threats. Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah was due to deliver a pre-scheduled speech later Tuesday, during which he was expected to give his response to the border deal. - AFP
