U.S. energy mediator Amos Hochstein said in an interview Monday that “some progress” was made in his talks with Lebanon’s leaders earlier in the day regarding the sea border demarcation file.

“I would say today’s meeting was important and I was honored that we were able to be with the three presidents at the same time,” Hochstein told LBCI television.

British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has said that the sailing Monday of the first grain ship since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is an “important first step.”

Under the U.N.-brokered agreement, the ship, Razoni, left Ukraine’s Odessa this morning for Lebanon, traveling along a safe corridor established under the deal.

The lead investigator into the Beirut port blast tragedy, Judge Tarek Bitar, has reportedly said that he will not step down, as Lebanon prepares to mark two years since the catastrophic explosion.

Officials in Israeli’s security establishment have sent “clear messages” to Lebanon through the Americans, saying that if Hezbollah “does not restrain itself,” the Israeli army will “respond to any breach of calm and will not be satisfied with just intercepting drones,” Israeli news website ‘Walla’ has reported.

The Israeli security officials also explained that Washington is pinning major hopes on the negotiations on the maritime border between Israel and Lebanon to “prevent a security escalation” and to “show the Arab countries that the United States has influence in the region.”

Head of the Israeli foreign and defense committee Ram Ben Barak said Monday that Lebanon will pay if Hezbollah attacks Karish.

He added that Hezbollah's threats are not affecting the negotiations between Lebanon and Israel over their maritime border demarcation.

U.S. mediator Amos Hochstein has informed Lebanese leaders of an Israeli proposal for demarcating the maritime border according to a path based on Line 23, an official Lebanese source said.

“The proposal starts from the coordinates of Line 23 and deviates north to reach the central line between Lebanon and Cyprus,” the source told Al-Jazeera television.

Outgoing U.N. Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Lebanon Najat Rochdi has penned an op-ed concluding her mission in Lebanon before taking up her new role as U.N. Deputy Special Envoy for Syria.

In her article titled “My journey in Lebanon”, the outgoing RC/HC reflects on her two-year mission in Lebanon, the many challenges facing Lebanon, the impact the U.N. has made on her watch, and the prospects for Lebanon’s recovery and "prosperous future." She also stresses the need for justice and the renewal of Lebanon’s social contract.

Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has said that his party will decide how to act in light of the outcome of U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein’s talks with Lebanon’s leaders on Monday.

President Michel Aoun, Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri met Monday with U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein in Baabda, in the presence of U.S. Ambassador Dorothy Shea, Deputy Speaker Elias Bou Saab, and General Security chief Maj. Gen. Abbas Ibrahim.

Speaking after the meeting, Hochstein said that he is very optimistic that a demarcation agreement will be reached in the coming weeks after he returns to Beirut to resume the negotiations.

President Michel Aoun said Monday that Lebanon won't be lenient as to its natural resources, as Lebanon celebrated its 77th Army Day.

Aoun affirmed his keenness on Lebanon's rights, adding that the aim of the border demarcation talks is to protect Lebanon's natural resources.