US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in the region Saturday night for the start of another round of shuttle diplomacy between Israel and Lebanon. Rice met with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert Saturday night in private. She is set to arrive in Beirut Sunday and will decide following meetings there whether to return to Israel for more talks, Haaretz reported.
The deal promoted by Rice is for the deployment in Lebanon of an "international stabilization force" comprising 10,000 to 30,000 troops in return for Israel's withdrawal from the Shebaa Farms. The international force would assist the Lebanese army to deploy in southern Lebanon and inspect the crossings between Syria and Lebanon, so that no arms will be smuggled to Hizbullah.
By Wednesday, the U.S. would like to gain approval for a new Security Council resolution that will call for an end to hostilities.
Israeli sources said France has decided to participate in the international force presented by Rice, and that the release of the captured Israeli soldiers would be part of the deal. France has drawn up a draft UN Security Council resolution that would call for an immediate cessation of hostilities in Israel and Lebanon and prepare for the deployment of an international force.
French President Jacques Chirac's office said in a statement on Saturday that it would not deploy its forces until a cease-fire has been reached. "The agreement between the sides is a precondition for the entry of a multinational force in south Lebanon," read the statement.
Prior to the Olmert-Rice meeting, Israeli sources said the Bush administration had asked Israel to be flexible over the issue of a pullout from Shebaa Farms, so that the support of the Lebanese government to the deal being formulated can be secured.
