Lebanese govt. says talks with Israel 'still indirect', rejects 'normalization'

Lebanon’s negotiations with Israel are “still indirect” and our stance does not support “normalization,” Information Minister Paul Morkos announced Thursday after a cabinet session.

Informed sources had told Al-Manar TV that the U.S. and Israel consider that the work of the ceasefire monitoring committee in its military-security nature has “ended” and that “a diplomatic-political committee” should be formed,

“However, the Lebanese state has rejected this proposal, seeing as the political-diplomatic aspect means normalization with the enemy,” the sources added.

Sources also told Al-Mayadeen TV that “everything that is being said about these groups being a prelude to normalization is baseless.”

A statement from the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that representatives of the Israeli and Lebanese armies, the U.S. and France agreed during a meeting of the ceasefire committee in Naqoura to "establish three joint working groups aimed at stabilizing the region."

"These groups will focus on the five points controlled by Israel in southern Lebanon, discussions on the Blue Line and remaining disputed areas, and the issue of Lebanese detainees held by Israel," the statement added.

The sources told Al-Mayadeen that “these groups are not separate from Resolution 1701 and will not engage in direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel.”

An Israeli political source said Wednesday that "the discussions are part of a broad and comprehensive plan."

“The Prime Minister's policy has already changed the Middle East, and we want to continue the momentum and reach normalization with Lebanon. Just as Lebanon has claims regarding the borders, so do we. We will discuss these matters," the source told Israel’s Channel 12.

"We and the Americans think that this is possible after the changes that have occurred in Lebanon," the source said.

The United States announced Tuesday that it will be “bringing together Lebanon and Israel for talks aimed at diplomatically resolving several outstanding issues between the two countries.”

A statement issued by Deputy U.S. Special Envoy for Middle East Morgan Ortagus said the issues that will be discussed are “the release of Lebanese prisoners, the remaining disputed points along the Blue Line, and the remaining 5 points where Israeli forces are still deployed.”

“Military to military talks concluded in Naqoura, Lebanon today, and subsequently 5 Lebanese prisoners have been released back to Lebanon from Israel,” Ortagus added.

“Everyone involved remains committed to maintaining the ceasefire agreement and to fully implement all its terms. We look forward to quickly convening these diplomat-led working groups to resolve outstanding issues, along with our international partners,” she said.

"We want to get a political resolution, finally, to the border disputes," Ortagus said in an interview on Al-Jadeed television.

"When it comes to the border agreement, the land border agreement, there are 13 points -- I think that six are still problematic," she added.

Ortagus added that Israel had "withdrawn from over 99 percent of the territory."

"I feel fairly confident that... we can have final resolution on the five points and ultimately on the remaining issues related to the Blue Line," she said.

In its Wednesday edition, the pro-Hezbollah al-Akhbar newspaper warned that “America has plunged Lebanon into the normalization adventure” and that it is “dragging Lebanon into peace negotiations.”

It also quoted the head of the U.S.-based Hostage Aid Worldwide organization Nizar Zakka as saying that “what happened in the file of captives is aimed at paving the way for any peace initiatives and negotiations with Lebanon,” adding that “this is what the U.S. administration is looking for.”