A senior U.S. official advised Lebanon not to drill in disputed waters off its coast until a deal on maritime boundaries is reached, adding that Washington was working on ways to resolve competing claims over the territory.

“I think the most advisable policy for choosing where to drill is to reach an agreement on the disputed zone so there isn’t a disputed zone. I think it would be good not to touch the disputed zone until there is a resolution for this dispute,” Amos J Hochstein, U.S. deputy assistant secretary for energy diplomacy, told The Daily Star in an interview.

He added that most oil companies were not willing to risk drilling in disputed zones, claiming that firms preferred to work in areas that were within the recognized Lebanese territorial waters. [Link]