CAIRO, June 18 (Aswat Masriya) - There are ongoing discussions between Egypt and Palestine regarding the demarcation of the maritime border between the two countries, an official in the Egyptian foreign ministry said on Saturday.

The official said in statements to Aswat Masriya that Egyptian and Palestinian officials are currently consulting each other on demarcating the maritime borders after the latter requested that such negotiations begin.

The meetings between the parties are aimed at reaching the legality of each party’s geographical “rights” as per international law, the official said.

“The [negotiations] have not been formally set by any contracts, as was the cases with the Saudi agreements, but consultations between the two sides are meant to reach a formula of understanding in accordance with expert opinion," he added.

Last April, the Egyptian cabinet announced that Egypt signed a maritime border demarcation agreement with Saudi Arabia stipulating that the two disputed islands, Tiran and Sanafir, will be part of Saudi territorial waters.