Israel Mulling Non-Aggression Treaty with Lebanon

Al-Manar

"20/10/2008 The Israeli Foreign Ministry is examining an initiative aimed at reaching a long-term non-belligerence pact with Lebanon to prevent renewed fighting along the northern border, Israeli daily Haaretz said Monday......

Eran Etzion, the head of the Israeli Foreign Ministry's political planning section, said a full peace agreement with Lebanon can only come in the wake of a similar deal with Syria. Still, he said, Israel can try to advance on a separate political track with Lebanon, the end result of which could be a long-term non-belligerence pact.

The agreement would be signed by both governments, and its focus would be a reciprocal agreement on the route of the border between the two countries. The deal would include a solution to the dispute over the occupied Shaba Farms border area and the divided village of Ghajar, as well as a number of small border adjustments demanded by Lebanon.

The recommendation would provide for a coordination apparatus between the Israeli occupation army forces and the Lebanese army, as well as the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) over border patrols and other monitoring activities.

Israel is expected to ask Lebanon to significantly reduce Hezbollah's weapons stores, and to extend the Lebanese army's authority across the entire country, with a special emphasis on the area south of the Litani River, which is the closest area to occupied Palestine. In return, an agreement would have to be reached over Israeli overflights in Lebanese airspace......

Those in favor of dealing with Syria first agreed that the only tenable option on that track would involve negotiations over a final-status agreement with an Israeli withdrawal from the occupied Golan Heights.

Supporters of this strategy said an agreement with Syria would be easier to reach than with the Palestinians, the chances for its success are greater and the strategic dividend Israel would receive is bigger. They also said such a deal would greatly change the balance of power in the region by removing the threat posed to Israel by the Syrian army, placing distance between Damascus and Iran and possibly engendering a deal with Lebanon......."