Naqura Bay south of the Lebanese city of Tyre as seen behind a new wall on the Lebanese border. AFP / JACK GUEZ
Israel and Lebanon said they’ll begin talks meant to resolve a longstanding maritime border dispute that has driven yet another wedge between the enemy nations and hobbled exploration in the energy-rich waters of the eastern Mediterranean.
Resolution of the competing claims would be a significant political achievement and could mitigate risk for energy companies looking to drill in a volatile region. The long-sought negotiations are to be overseen by the United Nations and mediated by the U.S.
"The two sides, Israel and Lebanon, asked the United States to work as a broker to demarcate the Israeli maritime border and it’s ready to do so,” Lebanese House Speaker Nabih Berri told reporters during a televised press conference.
Berri added that land boundary disputes must also be addressed concurrently. That demand had tormented efforts to bring the sides to the negotiating table and wasn’t referred to by Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz or the UN in their statements on the impending talks.
Negotiations are due to start in about two weeks, and Steinitz is expected to attend some of the sessions, according to an Israeli official who spoke on condition of anonymity. The meetings will be held at a UN headquarters in a southern Lebanese village that hosts tripartite talks on a regular basis.
Efforts to bring the sides together for border negotiations had dragged out for 10 years. Berri, a close ally of Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah group, denied his country’s agreement to take part was related to the recent normalization pacts between Israel and two Gulf Arab states or U.S. sanctions against Lebanese officials.
"The agreement took place on July 7, 2020, and this was before the sanctions were announced,” he said.
