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The United States Undersecretary of State for Near East Affairs, David Schenker, announced that the Israeli-Lebanese talks will begin in Naqoura on October 14 at the United Nations headquarters and will be hosted by the representative of the United Nations Secretary General. in Lebanon, Jan Kubis, which Schenker will attend in person.
Schenker explained in a telephone press conference that the agreement between Lebanon and Israel was sponsored by the United States and was the result of three years of diplomatic engagement by the United States at the request of the Lebanese and Israeli parties.
He stressed that this agreement is a framework agreement to initiate talks and not an agreement to demarcate maritime borders or share natural resources that may exist in the region.
Schenker encouraged the two parties to use this opportunity to reach an agreement that would benefit both parties. He stressed that the talks will focus on solving the pending problems around Blocks 8, 9 and 10 in an area that extends to 855 square kilometers at sea.
On why Lebanon agreed to negotiate with Israel at this time and if the matter is related to sanctions, the US Assistant Secretary of State said: “I understand that Lebanon is in a financial crisis and will benefit greatly from the use of its natural resources, which will help you solve your financial problems. “
He added: “I don’t know why we got this approval now. But whatever the reason, we are here today and in two weeks we will meet and start talking about the demarcation of the borders.”
Regarding the land borders between Lebanon and Israel, Schenker said: “There have been talks in the past on the Blue Line. We welcome at this stage the steps of the two sides to resume talks at a higher level on the points that are still there. pending on the Blue Line in order to reach an agreement between them on the matter. ” .
The US official said that “this path is independent and is often discussed between Israelis, Lebanese and the United Nations.”
Al-Hurra asked Schenker if Hezbollah had accepted Lebanon’s decision to hold talks with Israel. He replied: “We do not speak with Hezbollah, and I know that the Presidential office will lead the talks and form the negotiating delegation.”
Al-Hurra also asked him whether the negotiations would lead to normalization between Lebanon and Israel, for which Schenker emphasized that “these talks have nothing to do with establishing diplomatic relations or normalizing relations, but rather will focus only on delineating the maritime borders between Lebanon and Israel, where the two parties can benefit from the natural resources of their countries. “
On the other hand, Schenker explained that the FBI continues to investigate the Beirut port explosion and said: “We will announce the results when the investigations are completed.
