Lebanon’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Joe Raggi, received on Thursday the French Ambassador to Lebanon, Hervé Magro, who presented him with copies of documents and maps from French archives related to the Lebanon-Syria border.
This handover follows Lebanon's official request and a promise made by French President Emmanuel Macron to Lebanese President Joseph Aoun during his recent visit to Paris. The documents are expected to help Beirut move forward in the complex process of demarcating its land border with Syria.
Historical Context
Nearly a century after the creation of the two states, the Lebanon-Syria border remains partially undefined in any official capacity. The initial outlines of the two countries were drawn during the French Mandate in the 1920s. However, these boundaries were often established administratively rather than geopolitically and without clear bilateral ratification.
At the time, France, as the mandate power, redrew the region, creating Greater Lebanon in 1920, while maintaining a degree of fluidity between Lebanese and Syrian territories. This historical ambiguity continues to fuel tensions and disputes along various border segments, particularly in the Hermel and Bekaa regions.
France Reignites the Issue
The border issue was also a central topic in recent talks between President Macron and his Syrian counterpart, Ahmed el-Shareh, who was received at the Élysée Palace last Wednesday. In this rare meeting, the two heads of state discussed the need to move toward an official demarcation of the Lebanon-Syria border, in the spirit of mutual sovereignty and regional stability.
France’s initiative aims to encourage a diplomatic resolution to this longstanding and delicate issue—one that carries not only geographical and technical complexity, but also significant political, economic, and security implications, particularly concerning refugee management, trafficking control, and land disputes.
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