Lebanon signs border agreement with Cyprus

Lebanon and Cyprus have formally sealed a maritime border demarcation agreement; a move Beirut hopes will revive prospects for offshore gas exploration and future energy cooperation across the eastern Mediterranean.

The accord, signed at the Baabda presidential palace by Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides, brings to an end nearly 2 decades of intermittent negotiations and political hurdles.

Christodoulides described the deal as a long-awaited breakthrough that closes a file stalled since 2007, when both sides first outlined their exclusive economic zones but failed to bring the arrangement into force. Lebanese parliamentary approval never materialized, leaving the issue unresolved while other regional maritime negotiations advanced. The Cypriot president noted that the final signing should open the door to “what our countries can build together,” including deeper ties between Lebanon, Cyprus, and the wider European Union.

Beirut’s renewed momentum on the maritime front follows its 2022 US-mediated deal with Israel, which settled their contested offshore boundary and allowed Lebanon to resume exploration efforts. With the Cyprus agreement now finalized, Syria remains the only neighboring country with which Lebanon has yet to define its border limits (both land and maritime). Lebanese officials have emphasized that securing all its sea borders is essential for creating stability in the offshore sector and attracting long-term investment.

Despite political optimism surrounding the new agreement, Lebanon has yet to discover commercially viable gas or oil reserves in its territorial waters. Even so, officials view offshore exploration as a potential lifeline for an economy devastated by the 2019 financial collapse and electricity shortages that followed. Energy Minister Joe Saddi visited Cyprus last month to lay the groundwork for joint energy planning, signalling that Beirut intends to build regional partnerships rather than pursue exploration alone.

Constitutional disputes stir concerns over the agreement’s validity

Although the signing ceremony was hailed by many as a strategic achievement for Lebanon, the domestic response has not been uniformly positive.

Several legal and constitutional experts argue that the process by which the deal was approved leaves it vulnerable to challenge. The Lebanese constitution assigns treaty negotiation and ratification to the President of the Republic in coordination with the prime minister, but it also requires parliamentary approval for agreements that affect public finances or create long-term obligations for the state.

The maritime demarcation agreements fall squarely within those parameters, since they are related to national sovereignty, public resources, and potential long-term revenues from natural gas. From here, moving the agreement through the cabinet without securing a vote in Parliament sidelines the legislative branch and undermines the oversight role of elected representatives. This leads to, in the occasion of any future dispute (be it domestic or international), a possible triggering of legal questions about the validity of the agreement, weakening Lebanon’s position instead of strengthening it.

Without closing potential loopholes, Lebanon risks entering its next phase of offshore exploration on uncertain legal ground.

Turkey criticizes the deal, citing rights of Turkish Cypriots

Beyond Lebanon’s internal debate, the agreement also drew criticism from Turkey. Ankara’s foreign ministry spokesman, Oncu Keçeli, argued that the deal disregards the interests of Turkish Cypriots, whom Turkey considers an equal sovereign party on the island. He accused the internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus (in the south) of routinely signing maritime agreements without consulting the Turkish Cypriot side (in the north, where Turkish presence and influence remain till this day), a practice Turkey has opposed since the beginning of the 21st century.

He explained that “the area covered by the agreement lies outside Turkey’s continental shelf in the eastern Mediterranean, which Ankara officially registered with the United Nations on March 18, 2020,” stressing that his country “approaches this issue from the standpoint of the Cyprus question and the rights of Turkish Cypriots.”

Keçeli emphasized that while the area covered by the Lebanon-Cyprus deal does not overlap with Turkey’s registered continental shelf in the eastern Mediterranean, Ankara views any unilateral step by the Cypriot government as undermining the political and territorial rights of Turkish Cypriots. He urged countries in the region, including Lebanon, to avoid “signing such agreements with the Greek Cypriot Administration,” which “directly undermines the equal rights and interests of Turkish Cypriots on the island.” Turkey, he added, “in cooperation with the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, will continue to firmly defend the rights and interests of Turkish Cypriots.”