US in new push to resolve Israel-Lebanon sea border dispute

Published May 15, 2019

U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State David Satterfield, speaks during his meeting with Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri, in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, May 14, 2019. Satterfield's visit comes a week after President Michel Aoun presented the U.S. ambassador to Lebanon with a "unified stance" regarding the demarcation of maritime border between Lebanon and Israel. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

A senior U.S. official who has been mediating the maritime border dispute between Israel and Lebanon has met with Lebanese officials for a second day, signaling a new push to resolve the matter.

Israel and Lebanon both claim some 860 square kilometers (330 square miles) of the Mediterranean Sea. Lebanon hopes to unleash offshore oil and gas production as it grapples with an economic crisis. Washington is mediating between the two countries, which have been officially at war since Israel's creation in 1948.

Acting Assistant Secretary of State David Satterfield met Wednesday with Lebanese President Michel Aoun and Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil. He also met with Prime Minister Saad Hariri for a second time on the visit. Satterfield made no comments to the press.

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