Aoun discusses Paris initiative to demarcate land border between Lebanon and Syria
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun discussed, on Tuesday, May 5, 2026, with the Chief of Staff of the French Presidency, General Vincent Giroud, the details of the French initiative aimed at contributing to the demarcation of the land border between Lebanon and Syria, as part of a renewed diplomatic effort led by Paris.
The initiative is based on maps and historical documents from the archives of the French Mandate period (1920-1943), which Paris had previously handed over to the two parties, with the aim of facilitating the identification of overlapping border points and establishing clear technical foundations for the demarcation process.
According to official sources, through this step, France aims to end decades of border problems, strengthen Lebanese sovereignty, help control illegal crossings and curb smuggling, which will reflect stability on the border and the region in general.
Aoun: The file of the Shebaa Farms has been postponed to a later stage
During the meeting, President Aoun stressed the readiness of the Lebanese technical committees to start the land and sea demarcation process as soon as the Syrian side receives the decision, noting that the Shab'a farms file may be postponed to a later stage due to its regional complexities.
A statement issued by the Lebanese presidency said that the meeting at Baabda Palace discussed security and military coordination, the role of the Lebanese army in protecting the borders, in addition to the ongoing preparations for upcoming international conferences aimed at supporting Lebanese military institutions.
The French initiative includes a "technical package" that includes maps of the Mandate (1920-1943) and minutes of joint committees from 1933, aimed at demarcating the land border between Lebanon and Syria and determining land ownership, in addition to including a plan to control the borders through the activation of the Joint Technical Committee, and the development of official outlets such as the Gamar Bridge to combat smuggling
French Archive Documents
France has provided a new impetus to the process of demarcating the border between Lebanon and Syria, after the two countries handed over a set of maps and documents extracted from the French archives, dating back to the Mandate stage, and constituting a basic technical reference in determining the overlapping border lines.
The move came in response to a request from Lebanese President Joseph Aoun during his meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee Palace on March 15, where Macron announced at the time that Paris was ready to lead direct negotiations between Beirut and Damascus, in the first initiative of its kind since the independence of the two countries.
A historical reference dating back to the time of the Mandate
The documents are particularly important because they date back to the period between 1918 and 1943, when France drew the borders of the state of Greater Lebanon after annexing the four districts and designating the eastern Lebanon mountain range as the dividing line with Syria. Paris is thus the first incubator of these borders and the entity with its entire archive.
This step comes in the context of increasing international support for Lebanon since the beginning of 2025, with the election of a new president and the formation of a government that pledged to implement reforms and extend state authority, and constitutes an extension of the meeting of the defense ministers of Lebanon and Syria in Jeddah, followed by the visit of Prime Minister Nawaf Salam to Damascus, and the announcement of the formation of a joint committee to follow up on the demarcation file.
Information indicates that the committee will begin its work soon, taking advantage of the supportive international climate and French documents, in preparation for the launch of formal negotiations that may lead to a border agreement that is the first of its kind between the two countries.
3 Complex Files on the Negotiating Table
Syrian sources indicate that the path will not be easy, as the talks are distributed on three levels: the first is the Shebaa Farms, which is the most sensitive file, as Lebanon has been demanding for decades an official Syrian recognition of its Lebaneseness, while Israel continues to control it and turn it into an investment and tourism area.
The second level is the maritime border, which is further complicated by regional entanglements involving Turkey, Greece and Cyprus, which makes the demarcation of Lebanon's northern maritime border a very complex file.
The eastern and northern borders , which include points in the Bekaa Valley and Akkar, are witnessing security evasion, smuggling operations and illegal entry, which necessitates a parallel search on controlling crossings and preventing smuggling, with ideas such as increasing watchtowers or using international technical support.