BEIRUT, Sept. 5 (Xinhua) -- Lebanon's Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri urged on Wednesday all political parties to compromise in a bid to reach a consensus in government formation amid economic deterioration, local TV Channel Al Jadeed reported.
"Lebanon's economy is in dire situation and everybody should compromise in a bid to reach a consensus and save the country's economic sectors from further deterioration," Berri was quoted as saying.
Prime Minister Designate Saad Hariri has been facing various hurdles in his attempt to form a 30-member national unity government caused by the rifts among rival politicians over the representation of the main Christian parties, as well as the Druze sect and the question of Sunni representation from outside Hariri's Future Movement.
Hariri presented Monday a new proposal to President Michel Aoun on the government formation.
Aoun made a few reservations over the new formula causing pessimism to loom again over the cabinet formation.
On another front, Berri also expressed his worries about Israel's intention to start oil exploration in July 2019 in the Karish field, which is very close to the Lebanese waters.
The report quoted Berri as saying that he will get in touch with Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil and ask him to contact the Greek company in charge of oil exploration in this field in a bid to protect Lebanon's sovereignty.
Meanwhile, Lebanon's search for its first oil and gas reserves began in May after authorities approved an exploration plan submitted by a consortium of France's Total, Italy's Eni and Russia's Novatek.
One of the Lebanese blocks being explored, Block 9, borders Israel's maritime zone and contains waters claimed by both countries. This has led to years of brinkmanship with officials on both sides promising to protect their resources and warning about encroachment.
