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Representatives of Lebanon and Israel signed the final “historic agreement” on Thursday to delimit the maritime borders between them, after months of torturous negotiations that lasted months and mediated by the United States. The delegations of the two countries still at war, in Naqoura, a border city in the extreme south of Lebanon, in two separate rooms of the United Nations headquarters, will deliver to the American mediator a letter containing their approvals.
On Thursday, representatives of Lebanon and Israel will sign an agreement demarcation of the maritime border Which resulted in months of difficult US-mediated negotiations.
Elias Bou Saab, Lebanon’s chief negotiator, told reporters Thursday that President Michel Aoun had signed a letter approving a “historic” US-brokered agreement to delimit his country’s maritime borders with Israel. Speaking from the presidential palace, Bou Saab added that the signature represented a “new era” and that the letter would be delivered to US officials later Thursday at a border point in the far south of Lebanon in Naqoura.
On the other hand, Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid considered in a cabinet meeting during which the government approved the agreement, that Lebanon “recognized” the State of Israel by accepting the agreement. He said: “This is a political achievement. Not every day an enemy state recognizes the State of Israel in a written agreement before the entire international community.”
The agreement, which will allow the Jewish state to start producing gas from the region, will come into force, according to the text seen by the Agence France-Presse, when the United States sends “a notification containing the confirmation of each party’s agreement. the provisions stipulated in the agreement. “
On the eve of the signing, Energean announced Wednesday the start of gas production from the Karish offshore field, which was located in a disputed area and became fully part of Tel Aviv’s stake under the agreement. While Lebanon, mired in economic collapse, hopes to start drilling as soon as possible.
The American mediator, Amos Hochstein, after meeting with President Aoun: The agreement allows the start of work in the Qana camp, and the right of the Lebanese people is guaranteed by the terms of the agreement
– Lebanese presidency (@LBpresidency) October 27, 2022
Months ago, developments related to the maritime border demarcation file accelerated after a months-long hiatus due to disagreements over the area of that region. After meetings and shuttle contacts, the American mediator, Amos Hochstein, whose country has been leading mediation for two years, presented his latest offer earlier this month, and the two sides announced their approval.
How will the final agreement be signed?
On Thursday, Hochstein met with Lebanese President Michel Aoun, Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri, to head to the United Nations Forces Headquarters in the city of Naqoura, southern Lebanon in the afternoon, where the agreement, after which he will move to Israel.
After his meeting with Aoun, Hochstein expressed his happiness at having reached “this historic day in the region … and with an agreement that creates hope, economic opportunity and stability for both sides of the border”. He added: “The important thing now that we have achieved this is what will happen next, and I hope this is an economic turning point for Lebanon, for a new phase of investment and support to move the economy forward.”
Since the two countries are at war, each side should deliver a letter containing their consent to the American mediator in separate rooms. In this regard, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said that the agreement “will take the form of an exchange of two messages, one between Lebanon and the United States and the other between Israel and the United States”.
The special coordinator of the United Nations in Lebanon, Yoana Frontec, will be present at the signing, where she will be given the geographical coordinates relating to the demarcation of the maritime line that the two parties have agreed to send to the United Nations. These coordinates will replace those that the two countries sent to the United Nations in 2011.
For his part, a spokesperson for the Lebanese presidency made it clear that the mission of the Lebanese delegation will be limited to “delivering the message only in the presence of Hochstein and the UN representative, and will not meet the Israeli delegation at all.” Before the end of the mandate. By President Aoun, at the end of this month, Lebanon, plunged into crisis and serious political divisions, has not yet decided who will sign the agreement.
The Israeli government is expected to formally ratify the agreement on Thursday morning, before the planned signature in the afternoon in Naqoura.
In turn, US President Joe Biden said Wednesday after his meeting with his Israeli counterpart Yitzhak Herzog that the deal “will create new hope and economic opportunity.” He described it as “historic”.
Reaching an agreement was not easy, as the negotiations started in 2020 have faltered several times, before accelerating since the beginning of June following the arrival of a production and storage vessel near the Karish field, which Lebanon considered to be located in a disputed area.
What is the share of each party in natural resources?
Under the new agreement, the Karish camp will be completely on the Israeli side, while the agreement guarantees Lebanon the Qana camp, which goes beyond the dividing line that separates the two sides. Block no. 9, where the Qana field is located, will constitute an important exploration area by the French “Total” and the Italian “Eni”, which have obtained contracts for the exploration of oil and gas.
Energean said it hopes to be able to produce 6.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year in the short term, with the amount subsequently rising to eight billion cubic meters per year. He added: “We are delighted to announce the safe production of the first quantities of gas from the Karish field off the coast of Israel. The flow of gas is constantly increasing.”
On the Lebanese side, the authorities announced that it had been agreed with the French company Total to start exploration phases immediately after the final agreement. However, despite the deal, experts believe Lebanon is still a long way from extracting oil and gas resources and this could take five to six years.
Beirut counts on the presence of natural resources that would help overcome the catastrophic repercussions of the economic collapse that the country has been witnessing for three years, and the World Bank has ranked it among the worst in the world since 1850. More than 80 percent of Lebanese they have fallen below the poverty line and the Lebanese pound has lost more than 90 percent against the dollar.
FRANCE 24 / AFP / Reuters
