DATE=6/18/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=UN/LEBANON
NUMBER=2-263588
BYLINE=LISA BRYANT
DATELINE=CAIRO
INTERNET=YES
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan
says it is up to the United Nations and not Israel or
Lebanon to determine whether either side has violated
the recently drawn U-N border line. Mr. Annan made
his comments during a stopover in Egypt, as Lebanon
continues to dispute Mr. Annan's findings that Israel
has withdrawn from southern Lebanon. From Cairo, Lisa
Bryant reports.
TEXT: Secretary General Kofi Annan says he will not
budge from his conclusion about the Israeli-Lebanese
border. He stressed that it is the job of the U-N
alone to certify that Israel has fully withdrawn from
south Lebanon, after 22 years of occupation. It's also
up to the world body, he said, to make sure that both
countries abide by that certification.
///ANNAN ACT///
Let me repeat: Verification of violations is the
responsibility of the United Nations and UN
troops - not of the parties. And if any of the
parties were to [find] the violations, they
should report to the UN forces that will verify.
If we get into the situation where we hand over
verification of violations to either party we
are headed into very dangerous grounds.
///END ACT///
Mr. Annan certified Israel's withdrawal from south
Lebanon on Friday and the United Nations Security
Council backed his conclusion (Sunday) following
marathon negotiations in New York.
The Secretary General is now on a seven-nation Middle
East tour, which includes Egypt, to drum up support
for the latest Middle East peace move.
But so far, the U-N's certification has been met with
resistance by the Lebanese government. Beirut has
disputed the border lines, and has complained that
Israelis are still on Lebanese soil.
For his part, Mr. Annan says United Nations officials
were now checking out Lebanese complaints of Israeli
encroachments across an established border - not
verifying the withdrawal had taken place. The
Secretary General also sought to downplay the
seriousness of his differences with Lebanese leaders.
///ANNAN ACT///
I would not describe it as a dispute. I hope its
only a hiccup that will be resolved very
shortly.
///END ACT///
Mr. Annan said the U-N plans to double to about nine
thousand the number U-N troops, to monitor the
Lebanese-Israeli border area. He said Lebanon has also
requested to deploy troops in the south. He said about
500 to 1,000 Lebanese troops have already been
deployed.
Mr. Annan is to meet later this week with Lebanese
President Emile Lahoud, along with senior Lebanese
officials on the ongoing border differences between
the two sides. He will also meet with Bashar Assad,
the son of late Syrian President Hafez al Assad, who
is poised to become the country's next president. On
Sunday, Mr. Annan met with Iran's leaders to discuss
the transformation of the Lebanese resistance force,
Hezbollah, into a political movement. (SIGNED)
NEB/KBK
18-Jun-2000 16:24 PM LOC (18-Jun-2000 2024 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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