Israel expects to launch US-mediated talks within a month with Lebanon on setting their maritime border, Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz said on Wednesday.
Lebanon has not commented publicly on whether it would attend talks or on any possible timeline.
"I hope that in the next month, during this summer, that we will begin negotiations," Steinitz told Channel 13 News. "They said that yes, they are prepared to sit and solve the dispute but there are still the terms [to be agreed]."
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
Formally at war since 1948, Israel and Lebanon have long disagreed on border demarcations in the Eastern Mediterranean, an issue that gained prominence in the past decade when large deposits of natural gas were found there.
Among the bridging proposals put forward by both sides was for international energy groups operating in both Israeli and Lebanese waters to carry out the first seismological survey of the disputed area.
US envoy David Satterfield has been traveling between Israel and Lebanon to try to lower tensions, which have also stemmed from a land border dispute.
A US official said last week that Washington "stands ready to work towards solutions that are mutually agreeable to both parties" but declined to elaborate on Satterfield's discussions.
Lebanese lawmakers close to parliament speaker Nabih Berri have quoted him as saying there was "clear progress" on efforts to resolve the border dispute. Lebanon was awaiting responses after presenting a "united stance" on the matter, they quoted him as saying, without elaborating.
Israel is currently tendering off 19 offshore blocks to exploration and production companies but it has avoided offering areas close to the disputed border.
