Russian Delegation Seeks to Clinch Oil Exploration Deal with Lebanon
A Russian team is visiting Lebanon in an attempt to sign contracts with Lebanese authorities to have oil exploration rights in Lebanon’s Exclusive Economic Zone, media reports said Saturday.
As Safir daily reported that the delegation was carrying a message from Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin to his Lebanese counterpart.
It met on Friday with PM Najib Miqati, Speaker Nabih Berri, Energy Minister Jebran Bassil, Economy Minister Nicolas Nahhas, Defense Minister Fayez Ghosn and Army chief Gen. Jean Qahwaji.
While Miqati’s sources told An Nahar that the issue of oil was not at the top of the agenda of the delegation’s talks with Lebanese officials, As Safir said the two sides discussed the revival of cooperation protocols in all sectors and mainly investment in gas and oil in Lebanon’s territorial waters.
The delegation and the Lebanese officials also discussed energy, dam and infrastructure projects and the possibility of the contribution of Russian companies to such projects.
Its mission also included discussions of military cooperation between the two countries. The delegation informed Ghosn and Qahwaji Russia’s readiness to fully support Lebanon in that regard.
Meanwhile, opposition MP Butros Harb said that he was still waiting for an answer from Miqati’s cabinet on Syrian President Bashar Assad’s alleged request from Bassil to give Russian companies rights to explore oil and natural gas in Lebanese waters.
Bassil “should have taken permission from the president and the premier before travelling (to Damascus) and should have immediately informed the cabinet about his talks (with Assad) but this didn’t happen,” Harb said.
over 12 years
On the other hand this is a new face of the cold war that is rising, when Americans isolate somebody russia comes to the rescues of course to a certain extent...
over 12 years
The oil deal has probably been clinched already by the new Pasdarani oil minister in Tehran....The Russian should hope at best to partner with those, and get a peace of the action.....In the same way that major electricity tenders are the ' chasse gardee ' of amal and go sometimes to the Iranians (and dont have much accurate info on the subject), the oil file will be under exclusive managment of the Hezb, especially if they can serve some political purpose, and through it create another Shebaa farms issue! It will be interesting to see Iranians running an oil platform at a stonethrown from Israel' s territorial waters!
over 12 years
@ bipartisan ,
The Russians are not waiting for your advice to go ahead or not in their investments or involvements in Lebanon , Syria or any other place .
FYI and in case you are not aware of it , Lebanon is today in very good and very safe hands , as well as Syria , and nothing or nobody will dare come and disturb that serinity in the 2 countries .
The new Lebanese government is Here to STAY , like Bashar el ASSAD in Syria like it or not .
Please take note in the future in your very very long and useless comments here on naharnet .
over 12 years
7belna 7ake when will they start
& where can we apply for such jobs lol
over 12 years
Le phenicien sorry to disappoint you but we are defenetly not in safe hands. First because at least half of the lebanese are not of your opinion, second because we have a very divided parliament which hold together by a thread, and because a huge part of the lebanese people (and plz do not bother giving percentages), do not want the party of god to rule them. We are not in safe hands because the majority of the Sunnis feel they are not represented in the government and that their majority have been hijacked. We are not in safe hand because almost half of the christians which sides with 14 of march are against the government. I am not demonizing the government. What i am saying is that today not tomorrow we need to discuss the arms of the resistance not to remove them but to make the resistance stronger and by all the lebanese and for all the lebanese we definitely need to get give the authority of on the resistance to the parliament where the will of the people is spoken.
over 12 years
Bipartisan... Its irrelevent if half the population is against tye government. This is the case in almost all democracies. Whats important is that they work hard and get things done that improve the lives of the citizen.
I agree that we need to work on integrating the resistance with the army and government, but how do you expect that to occur when there are members of the former government that work openly with Israel to target Hezbollah. The defense minister Elias el murr provided the u.s. Embassy with targets and recommendations next time Israel bombs Lebanon! And what has happened to the treachouros leach? He started a newspaper and lives like nothing happened. When we stop using foreign countries to get an advantage on domestic political opponents, then we will have a chance.
over 12 years
@ bipartisan ,
You ask me no to talk about percentage , but you do and give a wrong percentage .. You are a tipical March 14 or a tipical citizen of the " late " Hariristan !
FYI , the Christians are represented by GMA and Sleiman Frangieh , both of them represent 70 % of the Christians .
The Sunnis that you are talking about , are the followers of Hariri or the employees of his " illegal " companies .. They represented the majority of that community , But today , they dont anymore for 2 main reasons .
First reason is that the Sunnis in particular , follow automatically the PM that is in office who ever he is ! and today , this PM is Mikati not Hariri .
And Second reason , even Dar el Fatwa has left Saad Hariri and is today behind PM Mikati , like tha majority of the Lebanese Sunnis that are not Wahhabies or Salafis .
No need to give you a lecture about the Druze vote or the Shiias !!
So how do you come up with half of the Lebanese people !?! 75 / 25 is a better figure !
over 12 years
"Lebanon is today in very good and very safe hands , as well as Syria , and nothing or nobody will dare come and disturb that serinity in the 2 countries ."
Le Phenicien, if you consider 2,000+ peaceful protesters slaughtered in Syria and a lawless armed militia in Lebanon "serinity"[sic] I'd hate to see what you consider chaos.
over 12 years
Well phoenicien no, sleiman and gma don't represent 70%% of the Christians. I would like to see ur sources. Additionally, tough sht, m14 is political Prliamentary majority according to ur beloved Doha which u bums eventually broke by tearing down the government. U and ur fellows r terrorists and will continue to tear down leb and any agreement u people agreed to until ur word w bas rules leb.
over 12 years
And such a deal with Russia will juts make Leb Russia's new pet once the old dog Syria gets put down. Either let the americans drill, or start a government run company funded by the billions our feudal leaders possess! Fkn bums
This will not bring back russian support to syria, they already know that bashar is fighting against the clock, and i wouldn't advise the russians to hold deals with the cabinet because nothing is certain of its fate, and the hall situation in the middle east is in a mess lets wait and see