Israel, Lebanon eye maritime deal

JERUSALEM, June 6, 2018 – A deal that would settle the maritime border between Israel and Lebanon and unlock further oil and gas exploration in the Eastern Mediterranean could come by the end of 2018, international media reported on Tuesday.

A US-mediated back channel has produced “new ideas,” Reuters reported.

“There are some new ideas on the table,” Israel’s energy minister, Yuval Steinitz, told the agency. “There is room for cautious optimism.”

The news came days after Lebanon approved its first oil and gas exploration plan, giving Eni and Novatek the go-ahead to drill in offshore blocks 4 and 9 in the Mediterranean. Part of Block 9 is in an area disputed by Israel, but the companies do not plan to drill there for the time being, earlier reports said.

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