Lebanese Journalist Fadi Boudaya: Negotiation Of Maritime Borders With Israel Is A Victory For The Resistance

Lebanese journalist Fadi Boudaya said in an October 11, 2020 interview on Al-Manar TV (Hizbullah-Lebanon) that the negotiation of maritime borders with Israel is a victory for the Lebanese resistance, because it will enable Lebanon to make use of natural resources such as oil and gas in the Mediterranean Sea. He praised the "resistance" for forcing Israel to negotiate, and he argued that the presence of oil industry representatives on the negotiation team does not change the military nature of the talks.

Host: "Do you think that this demarcation [of the borders] serves the Zionist entity, or is it one of the achievements of the resistance?"

Fadi Boudaya: "I think that the demarcation of the borders..."

Host: "I mean the maritime borders."

Boudaya: "Yes, the demarcation of the maritime borders is one of the most important fruits of the victory of the resistance. It [can also be] a very important victory for the state of Lebanon, if it negotiates from a position of power.

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"We have natural resources of oil and gas in the sea. How can we utilize them and make Lebanon benefit from them economically? If we carry out the demarcation, we will be able to tell the oil companies: Go ahead, drill for oil and reach an agreement with the state over the financial aspects. This goes back to the issue of demarcation.

"This country... Sorry, the Zionist entity is supported by the Arab countries, America, and the European countries. We are the ones who would have been left alone in this struggle if not for the resistance that managed to subject everybody to its demands. It has also managed to create a new equation – coercing the Israeli enemy to sit at the negotiations table according to the terms set by [the resistance].

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"Some say that the [Lebanese] delegation will possibly be joined by Wissam Chbat, heat of the Lebanese Petroleum Administration."

Host: "Hasn't the progressive Socialist Party opposed adding political advisors to the delegation?"

Boudaya: "They think that the military nature of the delegation has been changed."

Host: "They are all military men there..."

Boudaya: "Indeed they are, but the Petroleum Administration is part of the discussion. We have oil wells that we need to decide upon and examine the options that are associated with them. In addition, I think that this issue did not change its nature. On the contrary, Lebanon is still obligated to indirect military negotiations. It will not develop into political negotiations and there will never be a photo op."