Prime Minister Yair Lapid said on Monday that Israel would sign a "historic" agreement with Lebanon to demarcate the maritime border between the countries in three days.
"On Thursday, we are going to sign a historic agreement with Lebanon," the Israeli premier told his visiting Dutch counterpart Mark Rutte of the US-brokered deal that appears set to unlock production at Mediterranean gas fields.
Israel and Lebanon, which are technically at war, agreed to terms earlier this month on the deal.
An Israeli court on Sunday cleared the way for its signing after rejecting petitions demanding the approval of parliament.
Israel holds elections on November 1, and the petitions additionally argued that agreements to cede territory should not be concluded during an election period.
Lapid said he intended to bring the deal to the cabinet on Thursday for a vote.
"Israel will become in the near future a major gas supplier to Europe," Lapid told Rutte in a meeting on energy cooperation between Israel and Europe, in remarks relayed by the Israeli premier's office.
"And in the meantime, we have to work together to find medium-term and long-term solutions for green energy and renewable energy," he said.
Under the deal, Israel has full rights over the Karish gas field, which is expected to start gas production imminently.
Lebanon will have full rights to operate and explore the so-called Qana or Sidon reservoir, parts of which fall in Israel's territorial waters, with the Jewish state receiving some revenues.
Commenting on the deal, the head of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), Major General Aroldo Lazaro, said on Monday that "recent events give us hope."
"If the two countries can find an understanding at sea, my hope is that, someday soon, they will also be able to find it on land," he said at his Naqura headquarters in southern Lebanon, in remarks relayed by his office.
Naqura, just north of Israel, is where the Thursday signing will take place, according to Lebanese sources close to the talks, who also said the parties will sign the agreement in different rooms.
