[ad_1]
Russia has joined the race for gas from the eastern Mediterranean, taking advantage of an earlier deal with the Syrian regime.
This nine-year agreement allowed Russian companies to explore for oil and gas in Syrian territorial waters in exchange for direct military intervention from Moscow that saved President Bashar Assad’s regime from collapse.
The Russian activation of the 2013 exploration agreement in the eastern Mediterranean has put Turkey under pressure and has also sparked angry reactions in Lebanon.
This new twist in the regional sea surface fight has been sparked by a new agreement signed earlier this month by Damascus and Moscow authorizing exploration in a disputed area between Lebanon and Syria. Pro-regime media in Syria reported that Damascus had signed an agreement allowing two Russian companies, Capital Limited and East Med Amrit, to begin oil and natural gas exploration off the Syrian coast.
Local media said the regime had “granted Capital an exclusive right to explore and develop oil in Block Number 1 offshore in Syria’s economic zone in the Mediterranean off the coast of Tartous governorate to the borders maritime areas of southern Syria and Lebanon in an area of 2,250 square kilometers “.
Russia joining the quest to tap into the considerable gas reserves believed to exist beneath the eastern Mediterranean seabed is likely to cause a major disruption to relations in the region, not least because the Lebanese dispute the area in the that Russian companies can operate. .
It also pits Moscow directly against the Eastern Mediterranean Gas Forum countries, especially Israel, which is still negotiating the demarcation of its own border with Lebanon without making any progress.
Russia’s sudden involvement in the eastern Mediterranean gas dispute creates a new dilemma similar to that created by last November’s Turkish agreement with the Government of Libya’s National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli. Since then, the Government of National Unity (GNU) has replaced the GNA, but has not yet made clear its position on the controversial demarcation of the maritime border of its predecessor and the Exclusive Economic Zone agreements with Ankara that have already strained the Libya’s relations with Egypt, Israel, Greece, Cyprus and the EU in general.
Analysts say Russia has made a calculated move aimed at ensuring a low-key return to a strategic region. Following its military intervention in Syria in 2015, and later in Libya, its sudden intervention in the gas conflict will make it a key player in any negotiations aimed at charting the future map of the region.
But Russia’s action is sure to have an impact on regional alliances already forged as a result of the eastern Mediterranean gas conflict. Turkey, which has closely coordinated its actions with Russia in Syria and Libya, will find itself in a difficult situation as its Russian ally now promises to be a tough competitor in offshore energy exploration.
All of these factors could disrupt Turkey’s own plans to reshape the future of the region. He faces two options: reluctantly accept the new reality or act to abort the Russian-Syrian exploration deal.
Lebanese sources told The Arab Weekly that the Syrian announcement of the new Russian deal largely explains Turkey’s swift involvement in Lebanon, at a time when the country suffers from strategic neglect by other Arab countries.
These sources do not rule out that the Turks had advance information of what the Russians were planning and that this explains Ankara’s offer of aid to Lebanon.
During a visit by a Turkish ministerial delegation to Lebanon after the Beirut port explosion last August, Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay declared that his country was ready to rebuild the seaport and that, in the meantime, the Turkish port of Mersin ( 191 nautical miles away) is “Serving the Lebanese”.
In December 2013, Damascus signed a major agreement with Russia to explore for oil and gas in Syrian territorial waters, as part of a 25-year contract. The cost of drilling and exploration was estimated at $ 100 million. The original gas exploration deal involved Russia’s SoyuzNefteGaz.
Syria said at the time that Russia would finance these activities on the understanding that it recoups its production expenses.
The activation now of the agreement with Russian companies has caused quite a stir in Lebanon after it became clear that the maritime borders drawn by the Syrians, especially in Block No. 1, significantly overlap with Block No. 1 and the Block. No. 2 on the Lebanon side, striking approximately 750 square kilometers within the Lebanese maritime border.
Following the disclosure of the terms of the new agreement, Lebanese politicians have called for the clear demarcation of the maritime borders with Syria, similar to the border demarcation they have sought with Israel.
The head of the Lebanese Forces party, Samir Geagea, asked his country’s authorities to ask the United Nations to define the maritime borders with Syria, or to appeal to the International Court of Justice, if the Bashar Assad regime does not accept international arbitration. .
During a press conference north of Beirut, Geagea accused the Syrian regime of illegally attempting to seize 750 square kilometers of Lebanese waters, noting that the Assad government had “objected to Lebanon’s proposal for oil and gas exploration in 2014. “.
Geagea urged Lebanese President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister Hassan Diab to hire a law firm to send a warning to Russian companies involved in exploration to inform them that the Syrian bloc flows into Lebanese waters.
(A version of this article was originally published by Arab Weekly and reproduced with permission.)
[ad_2]
