American magazine: The crisis situation in Syria prevents supplying Lebanon with Egyptian gas
The American “National Interest” magazine considered that the plan to revive the Arab line and transfer Egyptian gas to Lebanon through Syria and Jordan is unsustainable or real, as a result of the political and security transformations in Syria torn by the bloody conflict, which indicates that if Bashar al-Assad wanted to open up to the Gulf states and the West, his move is currently not possible.
US foreign policy analyst Alexander Langlois said, “The plan to supply Lebanon with energy through Syria has some Arab and Western acceptance, but the crisis situation in Syria does not support that plan at this time.”
Langlois added that the agreement of the countries concerned with that file (providing Lebanon with energy) depends on a set of assumptions that contradict the current realities in Syria, which are closely related to the fate and affairs of Lebanon, considering that the agreement is great on paper, but it seems difficult to activate it on the ground if It was not impossible.”
He pointed out, “The Egyptian gas pipeline passes through areas of Syria that bear hostility to the Assad regime, such as the Homs Governorate, whose citizens do not love the latter, in addition to the presence of a danger to these lines.”
He considered, “It is difficult to expect any continuation of the flow of Egyptian gas through Syria in the foreseeable or medium period, despite the incentives that the Assad regime has to support that agreement,” noting that “several parties will seek to thwart the agreement and prevent its implementation.”
