A Lebanese minister today described as “unacceptable” any interference in US-sponsored negotiations to demarcate the maritime border between Lebanon and Israel, two days after Shiite Hezbollah launched drones into the Mediterranean.
“Any action outside the framework of state responsibility and the diplomatic framework in which the negotiations are being conducted is unacceptable and exposes them to unnecessary risks,” Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdullah Bou Habib said on television after meeting with Prime Minister Najib Mikati.
Although he did not name it, the minister was referring to Hezbollah, which confirmed it launched “three unarmed and unmanned aerial vehicles in the direction of the disputed Karish (gas) field on a reconnaissance mission” on Saturday. Hezbollah claimed “mission accomplished” while the Israeli military said it shot down the three aircraft when they approached “Israel’s economic maritime (zone)”.
The Lebanese minister said today that ongoing negotiations, with the efforts of US mediator Amos Hochstein, have reached an “advanced” stage and called on all sides to “show responsibility” for the state’s interest.
Lebanon and Israel, two countries that officially remain at war, began negotiations in October 2020, under the auspices of Washington, to define their maritime borders in order to remove obstacles to hydrocarbon extraction in the region. The talks broke down in May 2021, due to the disagreements of the two sides mainly regarding the zone where the Karis deposit is located. Israel insists Karis is in Israel’s economic zone, “several kilometers from the negotiated zone,” while Lebanon says the area is disputed.
SOURCE: APE-ME
Source: Capital
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