A blue helmet deployed in Naqoura, in southern Lebanon, on Oct. 27, 2022. (Credit: Mahmoud Zayat/AFP)
NEW YORK — UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday welcomed the signing of the maritime border agreement between Lebanon and Israel, saying it can promote greater stability in the region and increase prosperity.
"UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres welcomes the signing [yesterday] of the agreement to delineate the maritime border between Lebanon and Israel. As stated in our Oct. 13 statement, the Secretary-General strongly believes that this development can promote greater stability in the region and increased prosperity for the Lebanese and Israeli peoples," the UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said in a statement on Thursday.
The statement said that "at 3:45 p.m. local time on Oct. 27, the delegations of Israel and Lebanon presented to the Chief Mediator of the United States their signed agreement for the delineation of their maritime border, in a ceremony held at the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in Naqoura, southern Lebanon."
"The agreement took the form of two separate letters, one from Lebanon to the United States and the other from Israel to the United States. President [Michel] Aoun signed the letter for Lebanon prior to the ceremony, as did Prime Minister [Yair] Lapid for Israel, with the signed letters then presented by the respective delegations to chief US mediator Amos Hochstein at the ceremony," the statement noted.
"Special Coordinator for Lebanon Joanna Wronecka represented the UN at the ceremony, where she received the contact details of Lebanon and Israel to be deposited with the UN," the statement added.
In a separate statement after the ceremony, Wronecka welcomed this "historic achievement," which can "serve as a confidence-building measure that promotes security and stability in the region" and bring "economic benefits to both countries."