The agreement will open the door to energy exploration off the coasts of the two countries once it enters into force.
Bou Saab confirmed to “Reuters” that Hochstein is coming to Beirut next week with the agreement, and he did not say when it would be signed.
The text states that the two sides independently informed Washington of their approval of the agreement.
The United States will then send a notification to the parties that the agreement has entered into force, and then the two countries will send the coordinates of the demarcation of the new border to the United Nations.
But it is unlikely that a traditional signing ceremony will take place with the leaders of the two countries.
Hochstein said at a forum hosted by the Middle East Institute on Tuesday that he would visit the region next week, without specifying dates or destinations.
He added: “The President of Lebanon and the Prime Minister of Israel will decide on the signing.”
date of negotiations
- When the talks began, the talks were supposed to be limited to a maritime area estimated at 860 square kilometers, the borders of which are known as Line 23, based on a map Lebanon sent in 2011 to the United Nations.
- However, Lebanon later considered that the map was based on wrong estimates, and demanded to search an additional 1,430 square kilometers, including parts of the Karish field, known as Line 29.
- Negotiations that began between Lebanon and Israel in 2020 with American mediation were halted in May last year, due to differences over the area of the disputed region.
- Since last July, developments related to the file of demarcating the maritime borders between the two countries have accelerated after a halt, following the arrival of a production and storage vessel near the Karish field, which Beirut considers to be located in a disputed area, in preparation for the start of gas extraction from it.
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