Agencies-Gaza post
US envoy talks to Lebanese about dispute border with Israel
US envoy mediating between Lebanon and Israel on the disputed maritime border in Beirut met with Lebanese President Michel Aoun on Tuesday on ways to reach a solution amid mounting tensions along the tense border.
Amos Hochstein, the senior energy security adviser at the US State Department, arrived in Beirut on Monday at the invitation of the Lebanese government. The invitation came after Israel installed a gas rig at its designated location in the Karish field, which Israel claims as part of its UN-recognized exclusive economic zone. Lebanon insists it is in a disputed area.
Israel and the Iranian-backed Lebanese militant Hezbollah exchanged threats, with the Hezbollah leader last week warning that he would hit the gas platform in Karish. Heavily armed Hezbollah, which has fought several wars with Israel, has repeatedly claimed in the past that it would use its weapons to protect Lebanon’s economic rights.
Days later, Israeli army chief Aviv Kochavi threatened Lebanon with “unprecedented bombing” by saying that a future war would be very big.
US-mediated indirect talks between Lebanon and Israel have been stalled since last year due to disagreements within Lebanon over how large the disputed area is.
The two countries, which have been officially at war since Israel’s creation in 1948, both claim approximately 860 square kilometers (330 square miles) of the Mediterranean Sea. Lebanon hopes to free offshore oil and gas production as it grapples with the worst economic crisis in its modern history.
Last year, the Lebanese delegation in talks – a mix of army generals and professionals – offered a new map that pushes for an additional 1,430 square kilometers (550 square miles) of Lebanese territory.
Hochstein did not speak to reporters after his meetings with President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister Najib Mikati. Lebanese media reported ahead of Tuesday’s meetings that Aoun would make several proposals, including one showing willingness to give Israel full control of the Karish camp in exchange for Lebanon getting the Qana camp, part of which it extends. deep in the contested area.
During a visit to Lebanon in February, Hochstein handed Lebanese officials a proposal that allocates more than half of the disputed area to Lebanon. Lebanon did not respond to the proposal.
Asked what the United Nations could do to move the negotiations forward, Stephane Dujarric, a spokesman for the UN Secretary-General, said the United Nations can “work with the parties to help them find a solution through dialogues, through dialogue. discussion between the two parties”.
The maritime border dispute is over a decade old. In 2012, Lebanon rejected an American proposal to get 550 square kilometers (212 square miles), or nearly two-thirds of the area, while Israel would get the remaining third.
The offer was known at the time as the “Hoff Line”, named after US diplomat Frederick Hoff who was then mediating between the two countries.
