Diplomats attending a crisis summit on Lebanon in Rome on Wednesday pledged to do their best to help achieve a lasting ceasefire between Israel and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
Ministers from the US, Russia and European and Arab states issued a joint statement saying that "the Rome conference participants express their determination to work immediately to reach with the utmost urgency a ceasefire that puts an end to the current violence and hostilities".
"The ceasefire must be lasting, permanent and sustainable," said the statement, which fell short of calling for an immediate truce, as had been hoped by Italy, the UN and Arab states.
The declaration was read by Italian Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema, who co-hosted the talks on the 15-day-old conflict with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Both the US and Britain insisted that a ceasefire without preconditions was impossible and that root causes of the conflict, for which they blame Hezbollah, had to be addressed.
Rice said at a closing press conference that "we have to have a plan that will actually create conditions in which we can have a ceasefire that will be sustainable". But she said the summit had agreed on the need to deploy a United Nations-led force in Lebanon to help stabilise the region and coordinate humanitarian aid efforts.
"What we agreed upon is that there should be an international force under UN mandate that will have a strong and robust capability to help bring about peace and help humanitarian efforts," she said. D'Alema hailed Israel's willingness to accept the UN force.
"It's the first time that the Israeli government has accepted a large multinational force in the region. This represents an important chance to stabilise the Middle East," underscored the former premier, who also confirmed Italy's willingness to contribute to the force.
D'Alema said the conference asked Israel to act with "the maximum moderation and respect for the lives of civilians and infrastructure".
He said the diplomats had also agreed to hold an urgent international donors' conference to provide aid for the region.
The final statement called for "urgent and concrete humanitarian assistance" for Lebanon. The Rome summit brought together ministers from 13
countries (Italy, the US, Lebanon, Britain, France, Spain, Germany, Russia, Finland, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Turkey) plus representatives from the UN, the World Bank and the European Union.
Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora was present along with UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. But neither Israel nor Hezbollah representatives were here, and nor were Syria and Iran, who are both accused of backing Hezbollah. Despite the absence of the main players, participants insisted progress had been made towards achieving a ceasefire.
EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said that "after today's meeting, we are closer than ever to a ceasefire... and there is now much stronger mobilisation by the international community to help Lebanon".
Italian Premier Romano Prodi was also optimistic, saying that "the talks went well... Decisions were taken which are extremely useful for achieving peace". But Siniora told reporters that while "some progress" had been made, "much remains to be done".
He said his country had been "brought to its knees" by Israel, which he said had used "disproportionate force" in its response to Hezbollah attacks.
"Is the value of human rights in Lebanon less than that of citizens elsewhere? Are we children of a lesser God?" asked Siniora, who vowed to sue Israel for the "barbaric destruction" it had inflicted.
Annan said he would ask the UN Security Council to call for a ceasefire.
"We must give Lebanon the time and space to expand its authority across the entire country," he added. He urged Hezbollah to stop "deliberate targeting" of Israeli civilian targets and Israel to stop its "bombardments, blockades and ground operations".
But Israel remains adamant that its security concerns must be met before a truce can be called, a stance that has the backing of the US and Britain.
The conditions include the release of captured Israeli soldiers and the withdrawal of Hezbollah, which is based in southern Lebanon, from along the Israeli border.
The summit held a minute's silence for the victims of the conflict, which has killed at least 418 people in Lebanon and 42 Israelis and was sparked by a deadly incursion into Israeli territory by Hezbollah guerrillas on July 12. The conference opened under the shadow of the deaths of
four UN observers in an Israeli air strike.
