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Analysis: Diplomacy Gets its Turn in Middle East

Council on Foreign Relations

July 24, 2006
Prepared by: Esther Pan

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has begun her trip to the Middle East by signaling a shift in U.S. strategy on the crisis. Washington did not join the initial calls for an immediate halt to the fighting, but will now reportedly push for a ceasefire agreement that includes an international force to patrol Lebanon's border with Israel. It may also seek a new Security Council resolution repeating demands that Hezbollah disarm (BBC). Israel, originally resistant to the idea of an international force, has agreed to consider the deployment of foreign troops (LAT), possibly led by NATO, on the southern Lebanese border. But such forces have had a mixed history in the region. This new Backgrounder examines the legacy of multinational intervention in the Middle East.

Haaretz reports Israeli defense forces estimate they have ten days left before a ceasefire is called, and are using the time to push deeper into southern Lebanon. Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni tells Newsweek the military offensive is focused on weakening Hezbollah, and says Israel does not want a wider regional war.

Rice began her Mideast visit in war-torn Beirut as a show of support for Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora (NYT), whose government's weakness is examined in this Backgrounder. Some experts say Rice is taking the right steps. Middle East expert Martin Indyk writes in the Financial Times that the United States should push for a UN-sanctioned ceasefire that forces Hezbollah to recognize the authority of the Lebanese government.

Read the rest of this article on the cfr.org website.

Copyright 2006 by the Council on Foreign Relations. This material is republished on GlobalSecurity.org with specific permission from the cfr.org. Reprint and republication queries for this article should be directed to cfr.org.