Rice calls for ‘sustainable’ ceasefire
Although officials called for an end to the violence, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said there cannot be a return to a “status quo” of political uncertainty and instability in Lebanon. She said any cease-fire must be “lasting, permanent and sustainable”.
Ms Rice, who had been under pressure to lean on Israel to end its two-week-old offensive, maintained that any cease-fire must be sustainable and that there could be “no return to the status quo ante”.
Her wording suggested continued US support for Israel’s demand that the violence must end with the Hezbollah militia disarmed or at least removed from its border.
That position has set the United States, as well as Britain, apart from most of the others at the table — who, while supporting the goals, want Israel’s devastating offensive to first end.
Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Saniora, who attended and issued a dramatic appeal for peace, said the Rome conference made “some progress” — but pleaded with world leaders to keep working toward an immediate cease-fire.
“The more we delay the cease-fire, the more we are going to witness more being killed, more destruction and more aggression against the civilians in Lebanon,” he said.
The Rome conference appears to have formalised the numerous proposals to establish a new multinational force for southern Lebanon — one far tougher than the existing, three-decade-old UNIFIL operation, which has lacked a mandate to prevent hostilities.
“What we agreed upon is that there should be an international force under a UN mandate that will have a strong and robust capability to help bring about peace, to help provide the ability for humanitarian efforts to go forward and to bring an end to the violence,” Ms Rice said.
There was no immediate response from Israel, which did not attend. Israeli officials have expressed support in principle for the deployment of an international force, recognising that the weak Lebanese government could not likely subdue the Iranian and Syrian-backed Hezbollah without help.
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan appealed for nations to come forward with commitments to contribute troops for a force “that may eventually be sent to the region to help stabilise southern Lebanon to allow the government of Lebanon time and space to prepare its own troops and be able to extend its authority throughout the country.”
Britain’s Foreign Office said there was still no firm plan on how to deploy such a force, only an agreement that it is needed.
“How to bring one is still very much up for debate, but it’s important to realise that this was not the aim of these talks,” it said in a statement.
Ms Rice said the force’s mandate would be discussed “over the next... several days”. She added: “We also have asked that those meetings be held urgently so that force can be put together.”
French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy said at a separate news conference that France pushed for language calling for an immediate cessation of hostilities. But Ms Rice’s insistence that it say only to “work immediately for the cessation of hostilities” ultimately won out.
Mr Saniora said the violence has brought his country — still rebuilding from its 1975-1990 civil war — “to its knees”.
He recognised that Israel’s offensive had been sparked by Hezbollah’s incursion across the “blue line” but added that the resultant offensive was “disproportionate”.
He also appealed to Israel to enter a peace process with all of its Arab neighbours, a markedly different tone from many previous Lebanese leaders.
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