U.S. Calls for "Sustained Solution" to Israeli-Hizballah Conflict
23 July 2006
Bolton says permanent solution will require implementation of Resolution 1559
Washington -- A "sustained solution" to the conflict between Israel and Hizballah will require full implementation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1559, which recognizes the sovereignty of Lebanon and calls for the withdrawal of all foreign troops and the disbanding and disarming of militias, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton says.
In remarks on Fox News Sunday July 23, Bolton said Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's trip to Israel and Rome will enable her to speak to members of the “Lebanon Core Group" -- Lebanon, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, the European Union, Russia, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Nations and the World Bank -- and other "important leaders on the ground." (see related article.)
"What we're trying to do here is to put together the elements for a sustained solution to the problem, at least between Lebanon and Israel," he said. Such a solution will need to strengthen the government of Lebanon and eliminate "the Hizballah terrorist threat, which threatens both the innocent civilians of Lebanon as well as Israel."
"The worst result here would be a partial solution that returns us to this kind of problem again in a matter of weeks or months. We've got to think of the longer term here. There may be an opportunity. We need to go about it in a sustained fashion," he said.
PROPOSALS FOR AN INTERNATIONAL FORCE IN LEBANON
In remarks on CNN's Late Edition the same day, Bolton said the United States has been looking at the possibility of a multinational force in Lebanon, "perhaps authorized by the Security Council, but not a U.N.-helmeted force," analogous to the multinational force and observers in the Sinai between Egypt and Israel.
Bolton did not express an opinion on whether U.S. or NATO forces should be involved in such a multinational force, but he stressed that "the fundamental principle we have to look at is strengthening Lebanese armed forces and the democratic government of Lebanon generally."
Bolton warned such a multinational force must avoid taking over responsibilities that rightfully belong to the Lebanese government.
"What we really want to do is further carry out resolution 1559 to strengthen the institutions of the government of Lebanon, to assist in this case the Lebanese armed forces to be able to assert their authority over all the Lebanese territory," he said on Fox News Sunday. "[Y]ou don't want a multilateral force that usurps that role. You want a multilateral presence, an international presence that strengthens the Lebanese government's ability to control all of its territory."
Bolton noted that the current U.N. force in Lebanon, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), does not have the mandate to enforce U.N. Security Council Resolution 1559.
According to the United Nations Web site, UNIFIL was created in 1978 "to confirm Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, restore the international peace and security, and help the Lebanese Government restore its effective authority in the area."
ISRAEL'S RIGHT TO DEFEND ITSELF
Speaking on CNN's Late Edition, the U.S. ambassador warned against falling into "the trap of moral equivalency" in deciding whether or not Israel's recent actions have been appropriate.
"What Hizballah has done is kidnap Israeli soldiers and rain rockets and mortar shells on innocent Israeli civilians. What Israel has done in response is act in self-defense," he said.
Bolton said the United States has urged Israel to exercise "the utmost care in the conduct of its military operations, to avoid innocent Lebanese civilians and to avoid damage to the democratic government of Lebanon," and he added he believes Israel "is trying to carry that out."
Bolton noted Israel also has decided to allow the establishment of corridors into Lebanon to allow the distribution of humanitarian supplies to civilians.
"I think that's a very important development, to make sure that, even as hostilities continue, that the innocent civilians in Lebanon are provided for," he said.
CRITICISM OF SYRIA AND IRAN
Bolton sharply criticized Syria and Iran for their support of terrorist organizations.
"[W]hat we need Syria and Iran to do is stop supporting and financing terrorist groups like Hizballah and Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad," he said on CNN's Late Edition. "[G]ood estimates say that Iran supplies Hizballah roughly $100 million a year, and it was either Iran or Syria that supplied Hizballah with the Chinese-built C-802 anti-ship cruise missile that hit that Israeli ship a few days ago."
"Iran and Syria could contribute a lot if they'd stay out of the internal affairs in Lebanon and let that new democracy flourish," he said.
IRAN'S URANIUM ENRICHMENT ACTIVITIES
Bolton said the current crisis in Lebanon has not distracted the United Nations Security Council from its efforts to halt Iran's nuclear enrichment activities.
"Right now, in the Security Council we're trying to carry out the decision of the foreign ministers of the five permanent members of the council to impose on Iran a mandatory requirement that they suspend their uranium enrichment activities," he said. "And if they fail to do that, then the council, pursuant to the agreement that the foreign ministers have already reached, will begin to impose sanctions on Iran and further isolate internationally."
Bolton said the United Nations is looking at "targeted sanctions" that would focus on financial transactions. He added, however, that there are also other types of financial measures "we can and have been applying robustly to pressure the Iranian government to give up this nuclear weapons program."
For more information on U.S. policies, see Middle East and North Africa.
A transcript of Bolton's remarks on CNN Late Edition is available on the network's Web site.
Information on UNIFIL and the text of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1559 are available at the United Nations Web site.
(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
