Lebanon’s Prime Minister Nawaf Salam says the US-sponsored deal with Israel is intended to define the path of negotiations towards a lasting settlement but is not itself a treaty, Al Jazeera reports.

“The phrase ‘framework agreement’ causes confusion,” local media quoted Salam as saying.

“We are talking about a guiding framework for negotiations to define their path with the aim of reaching an agreement, not an agreement or treaty,” Salam said in an interview with Lebanon’s private broadcaster LBCI.

“We are not enthusiasts for negotiations with Israel, but we reached this stage after two wars that left thousands of victims,” he said, adding that the first offensive caused direct damage exceeding $7 billion, excluding economic losses estimated at around $13bn.