Last update - 00:00 18/09/2006
Report: Turkish peacekeepers to Lebanon by end of October
By News Agencies
Turkish soldiers are expected to join the international peacekeeping force in Lebanon at the end of October, the state news agency said Monday, citing diplomatic sources.
The Turkish contingent is expected to be made up primarily of naval forces with a "limited number" of ground troops, the report said. The precise details of the Turkish contribution are expected to be finalized after military and Foreign Ministry officials meet with UN officials next week in New York, the report said.
Earlier this month, Turkey's parliament approved sending soldiers to help
monitor the shaky cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah guerrillas based in southern Lebanon, despite widespread public opposition.
Turks, 99 percent of whom are Muslims, are wary of being drawn into fighting with fellow Muslims. Israel's offensive in Lebanon was widely opposed among Turks.
Turkey's prime minister, a staunch supporter of sending peacekeepers to
Lebanon, has assured the public that Turkish soldiers will be immediately
withdrawn if asked to disarm Hezbollah fighters. The geographical area of responsibility for Turkish soldiers had not been determined, the Anatolia news agency report said, but it is believed that they will be primarily used to monitor the seas to help ensure that Hezbollah is not rearmed, as demanded by the UN cease-fire agreement.
China to boost Lebanon presence
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on Monday confirmed that his country would increase its peacekeeping presence in Lebanon to 1,000 troops, dramatically raising China's profile in the region.
French President Jacques Chirac last week revealed China's peacekeeping commitment after meeting Wen in Helsinki, but until now China has not specified the size of its contribution to UN efforts to maintain peace in Lebanon.
"China has decided to increase its peacekeeping force in Lebanon to 1,000," Wen told reporters at a joint news conference in Beijing with Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi.
Around 200 Chinese engineers already work for the UN in Lebanon clearing mines and unexploded ordnance.
On Sunday, French Defense Minister Michel Alliot-Marie arrived in Beirut hours before some 900 French troops were to begin moving from the Lebanese capital to take up positions in south Lebanon.
Alliot-Marie told reporters at Beirut airport her visit aimed at reaffirming France's support for the Lebanese government following a monthlong war between Israel and Hezbollah guerrillas that ended Aug. 14. She said she will inspect her country's contingent to the United Nations peacekeeping force in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL.
The French are contributing the second largest contingent to the beefed-up UN force that is tasked with monitoring the cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah militants. France will command it until early next year, when Italy is to take over.
Some 900 French troops who have been staying at a temporary camp outside Beirut are on Monday to begin moving to encampments south of the Litani River, where the Israeli army is pulling out. They will join hundreds of Italians, Spanish, Indians and Ghanaians and other French already deployed in the area.
Besides its ground forces, France has 1,700 naval personnel that are helping to patrol the waters off Lebanon's shores.
Alliot-Marie will travel Monday to south Lebanon and will meet at UNIFIL headquarters in the coastal village of Naqoura with the force's commander, Major-General Alain Pellegrini. During her two-day visit, she will also meet Defense Minister Michel Murr and Prime Minister Fuad Saniora and is expected to hold a press conference Tuesday before leaving.