|
Trending Topics
|
Israel Seeks Diplomatic Solution to Mediterranean Gas Dispute with Lebanon
(Reuters) Ellen Francis and Dan Williams - Israel and Lebanon have an unresolved maritime border dispute over 330 square miles of sea. In December, Lebanon approved a bid by a consortium from France, Italy and Russia for gas exploration in an area that juts partly into waters claimed by Israel. Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz said Wednesday, "There is a dispute, which is no secret - it's been going on for years - over the border demarcation between our economic waters and Lebanon's. We hope for, and are prepared to move forward on, a diplomatic resolution to this matter." Steinitz said that in 2013, U.S. intermediaries had come close to clinching a deal involving "a kind of compromise."