Israel and Lebanon hold historic talks to resolve maritime border dispute

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – In an effort to resolve their maritime border dispute, long-time enemies Israel and Lebanon met Wednesday for a historic day of talks at a United Nations building in the Lebanese city of Naquoura, Fox News reports. The meeting concluded with both sides agreeing to reconvene for US-brokered negotiations. Both sides stressed that the talks should not be interpreted as a sign of ties or of normalizing diplomatic relations.

Through a joint statement, the US State Department and the UN said the talks had been productive, Fox News reports. “The two sides reaffirmed their commitment to continue negotiations later this month,” the statement said.

Fox News was told by a senior Israeli official that Israel’s purpose in talking with Lebanon is to resolve the dispute and remove all obstacles pertaining to Lebanon’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), so that there can be mutually beneficial discovery and development of gas fields in the Mediterranean. “This can be concluded in a few months, depending on Lebanon’s intentions and actions,” the official told Fox News.

Concerning how much time the talks would take, head of the Lebanese delegation Brig. Gen. Bassam Yassin said in a statement: “Based on the higher interests of our country, we are looking to achieve a pace of negotiations that would allow us to conclude this
dossier within a reasonable time.”

Supporters of a deal believe it would not only benefit the two countries, but also promote regional cooperation in the fields of natural gas and energy, Fox News said. The US and the UN have been trying to resolve the border dispute since Israel withdrew from Lebanon in 2000.

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