Lebanon, Israel to Launch Negotiations on Disputed Waters

Lebanon and Israel are set to launch negotiations to demarcate the maritime border between the 2 countries on Wednesday under the auspices of the United Nations and with American mediation. The negotiations will be held at the headquarters of the (UNIFIL) in Naqoura, southern Lebanon.

Both countries are formally still at war after decades of conflict over their maritime border running through potentially gas-rich Mediterranean waters.

The U.S. mediated talks were announced less than a month ago following 3 years of intense diplomacy by Washington after pressuring the Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah.

Talks come after the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain signed an agreement to establish full relations with Israel, under a U.S.-brokered deal.

A senior US State Department official specialized in Near Eastern affairs, David Schenker, will travel to Lebanon to take part in the negotiations, as stated by CNN.

A media notice issued by the US State Department revealed that Washington's ambassador to Algeria, John Desrocher, will accompany Schenker, and he will be "the American mediator in these negotiations."