Security Council meeting 5511

The President

I should like to acknowledge the presence at the Council table of the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Denmark, His Excellency Mr. Per Stig Moeller; the Minister for Foreign Affairs of France, His Excellency Mr. Philippe Douste-Blazy; the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Greece, Her Excellency Mrs. Dora Bakoyannis; the First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Qatar, His Excellency Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem bin Jabr Al-Thani; the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Her Excellency Mrs. Margaret Beckett, M.P.; and the Secretary of State of the United States of America, Her Excellency Ms. Condoleezza Rice.

On behalf of the Council, I extend a warm welcome to all of them.

I should like to inform the Council that I have received letters from the representatives of Israel and Lebanon, in which they request to be invited to participate in the consideration of the item on the Council's agenda. In conformity with the usual practice, I propose, with the consent of the Council, to invite those representatives to participate in the consideration without the right to vote, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Charter and rule 37 of the Council's provisional rules of procedure.

There being no objection, it is so decided.

The President

The Security Council will now begin its consideration of the item on its agenda.

Members of the Council have before them document S/2006/640, which contains the text of a draft resolution submitted by Denmark, France, Ghana, Greece, Slovakia, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America.

I wish to draw the attention of the members to documents S/2006/571, S/2006/578, S/2006/599, S/2006/621, S/2006/625, S/2006/630 and S/2006/639, containing the text of letters dated 24, 26 and 31 July, and 4, 7, 9 and 11 August 2006, respectively, from Lebanon addressed to the President of the Security Council.

I also wish to draw the attention of members of the Council to documents S/2006/595 and S/2006/626, containing the text of letters dated 29 July and 7 August 2006 from the Secretary-General addressed to the President of the Security Council, as well as document S/2006/593, containing the note by the Secretary-General dated 28 July 2006.

I give the floor to the Secretary-General.

The Secretary-General

I welcome wholeheartedly the draft resolution the Council is about to adopt and I am greatly relieved that it provides for a full and immediate cessation of hostilities. It is absolutely vital that the fighting now stop. Provided it does, I believe that this draft resolution will make it possible to conclude a sustainable and lasting ceasefire agreement in the days ahead, and I hope that this could be the beginning of a process to solve the underlying political problems in the region through peaceful means.

But I would be remiss if I did not tell members how profoundly disappointed I am that the Council did not reach this point much, much earlier, and I am convinced that my disappointment and sense of frustration are shared by hundreds of millions of people around the world. For weeks now, I and many others have been calling repeatedly for an immediate cessation of hostilities, for the sake of the civilian population on both sides who have suffered such terrible, unnecessary pain and loss. All members of the Council must be aware that this inability to act sooner has badly shaken the world's faith in its authority and integrity.

Since 12 July, when Hizbollah launched an unprovoked attack on Israel, killing eight Israeli soldiers and kidnapping two, both Lebanon and Israel have been thrown back into the turmoil of war, death and destruction.

According to the Lebanese Government, over 1,000 Lebanese have been killed and over 3,600 injured. Around a quarter of all of Lebanon's inhabitants, close to a million people, have been displaced. Too many of the victims have been children. In fact, more children than fighters have died in this conflict. Israeli bombing has turned thousands of homes to rubble. It has also destroyed dozens of bridges and roads, with the result that more than 100,000 people cannot reach safety; nor can relief supplies reach them. Such devastation would be tragic at any time. That it has been inflicted on Lebanon's people just when they were beginning to make real progress towards political reform and economic recovery makes it all the more so.

Israelis, for their part, have been newly awakened to a threat which they had hoped, with good reason, to have escaped when -- as the Council certified on my recommendation -- they withdrew from Lebanon six years ago. Some 41 Israeli civilians have been killed, and hundreds of thousands have had their lives disrupted -- being forced into shelters or to flee their homes -- by rocket attacks from Hizbollah, which has launched its fire indiscriminately, to sow the widest possible terror, making no effort to distinguish between civilian and military targets and also endangering civilians on its own side by firing from the midst of heavily populated areas.

Nor has the damage been limited to Lebanon and Israel. A region that could ill afford another chapter of violence and another source of instability has been inflamed further still. Extremists have been given new ammunition. The United Nations itself has been a target of protest and violence, despite the Organization's humanitarian efforts, including those of our valiant peacekeepers in the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), to reach people trapped in the crossfire. UNIFIL has had to cope with a situation for which it was neither mandated nor equipped.

I am full of pride and admiration for the courageous men and women who serve under the United Nations flag, and indeed for all the humanitarian workers; they have shown incredible courage since 12 July in carrying out their duties in the midst of intense fighting, which has injured 16 United Nations personnel and, tragically, caused the deaths of five others.

Indeed, UNIFIL's tenacity has made possible the diplomatic solution that you, the members of the Security Council, have just forged. Without it, you would have had to face the difficult prospect of UNIFIL's withdrawal. Indeed, you may yet have to face it in the hours and days ahead if the immediate cessation of hostilities called for in the draft resolution does not hold.

So, this draft resolution comes none too soon, and it marks a vital step forward. I am glad that Council members have been able to resolve their differences, accommodating many points of view, and I hope they will adopt this text unanimously. Having done so, they must work with equal determination to make what they have agreed fully effective on the ground.

First of all, humanitarian convoys and relief workers must be given a real guarantee of safe passage and access to those who need help. As soon as the fighting stops, the daunting challenge of helping people to return to their homes safely and rebuild their lives begins.

Secondly, the draft resolution rightly has at its core Lebanon's sovereignty and territorial integrity, consistent with Council resolutions 425 (1978), 1559 (2004) and 1680 (2006). The international community must give the Lebanese Government all possible support, so that it can make that sovereignty effective. The Government, acting through its regular armed forces and police, must be able to assert its authority throughout the country and on all its borders, particularly to prevent illegal and destabilizing flows of arms. Only when there is one authority, and one gun, will there be a chance of lasting stability. The Lebanese State, like any other sovereign State, must have a monopoly of the use of force on its own territory.

That implies, of course, a full and swift Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory. We now have a clear scenario for achieving that.

The decision of the Lebanese Government to deploy 15,000 of the country's armed forces to the south is a significant development. But, ready and willing as the army may be to undertake this task, the Government itself has acknowledged the need for help. This makes the Council's decision to strengthen the mandate and the numbers of UNIFIL a vital ingredient of the package.

Now, UNIFIL faces a new task, perhaps even more difficult and dangerous than its previous one. It must be robust and effective and ensure that no vacuum is left between the Israeli withdrawal and the deployment of Lebanese forces. Obviously, if it is to carry out this new mandate, it needs to be augmented with the utmost urgency and provided with sophisticated military capabilities. The Council cannot afford to relax for one minute. I urge its members to consult closely, and at once, with both existing and potential troop contributors, with a view to generating the additional forces needed as quickly as possible, before the situation on the ground once again spins out of control. And I urge the Council to make sure they have the equipment they will need.

I also appeal to all potential donors to respond swiftly to requests from the Lebanese Government for financial help as it struggles to reconstruct its devastated country.

Some may well be reluctant to do so without solid assurances that, this time, peace is here to stay. Such assurances are indeed essential. And they must rest not only on the cessation of hostilities or the deployment of an expanded peace force, but on the resolution of fundamental underlying political problems, including the release of prisoners, starting with those who have been taken hostage, and a resolution of the Sheba'a farms issue in accordance with resolution 1680 (2006).

I will therefore lose no time in taking up the role assigned to me in today's draft resolution. We have just had a terrible lesson in the dangers of allowing problems to fester. We must by now all know that, unless we address unfinished business, it can and will take us unawares.

The Lebanese Government will meet tomorrow, and the Israeli Cabinet on Sunday, to review the resolution. Over the weekend, I will undertake to establish, with both parties, the exact date and time at which the cessation hostilities will come into effect.

Lebanon has been a victim for too long. Mired in an incomplete political transformation since the end of the civil war, it has remained an arena in which both domestic and regional actors could play out their self-interested schemes. Such exploitation of a vulnerable country is shameful. It has undermined the laudable efforts of many Lebanese citizens to consolidate their country as a sovereign, independent and democratic State.

The country and its people deserve better. They deserve the full support of the United Nations in their effort to cast off the chains of external interference and domestic strife. Doing so will require both the establishment of national consensus among Lebanese and constructive cooperation, based on mutual goodwill and sustained dialogue, by all relevant parties and actors at the regional level, including the Governments of Syria and Iran.

Indeed, over the past five weeks we have been reminded yet again what a fragile, tense, crisis-ridden region the Middle East has become -- probably now more complex and difficult than ever before. It is now undergoing changes, shifts and realignments on a scale, and of a strategic significance, not seen since the colonial Powers withdrew at the end of the Second World War. Perhaps even more ominous than the physical destruction are the changes in perception that have been occurring, both inside the region and beyond it. The Middle East, which has long figured at the very top of the Council's agenda, is likely to remain there for years to come.

The draft resolution that the Council is about to adopt is only one step towards the comprehensive approach that is needed. Other steps will need to be taken -- many others. In order to prevent yet another eruption of violence and bloodshed, the international community must now be prepared to offer sustained support and assistance for the political and economic reconstruction of Lebanon, and also to address the broader context of crisis in the region.

In particular, we must not turn our backs on the bloodshed, suffering and hardship that have continued to afflict Palestinian civilians in Gaza and the West Bank, or the danger from Qassam rockets that continues to threaten the Israeli communities bordering the Gaza Strip. Progress in the Middle East peace process would undoubtedly facilitate the resolution of conflicts elsewhere in the region, and vice versa. Therefore, the various crises in the region must henceforth be addressed not in isolation or bilaterally, but as part of a holistic and comprehensive effort, sanctioned and championed by the Council, to bring peace and stability to the region as a whole.

The parallel crises in Lebanon and Gaza over the past few weeks have demonstrated, once again, that there are no military solutions to this conflict. War is not -- I repeat, war is not -- the continuation of politics by other means. On the contrary, it represents a catastrophic failure of political skill and imagination -- a dethronement of peaceful politics from the primacy which it should enjoy. By taking the first step today towards ending the fighting in Lebanon, the Council is belatedly reasserting that primacy -- as the founders of this Organization expected it to do.

Only political solutions will be sustainable in the long term. The peace treaties between Israel and Egypt, and between Israel and Jordan, are expressions of stable political arrangements and agreements. Through these treaties, the leaders of the countries concerned have courageously brought stability and peace to borders that were previously beset with violence, and thus to their peoples. Ultimately, similar arrangements, based on foundations that are well known to all of us, will have to be put in place along all the borders where there is conflict. Only comprehensive solutions can bring lasting peace.

The United Nations stands for a just solution to all these issues. We stand for security for Lebanon, for Israel and for the region. We stand for a comprehensive solution, and must therefore do our utmost to address all the separate but intertwined issues and conflicts in the region, whether manifest or latent. Delays will only mean more lost lives, more shattered hopes and a further decline in the standing and authority of the Council and the Organization.

We must spare the people of Lebanon, of Israel and of the wider region any further bloodshed -- both now and in the months and years ahead.

The President

I thank the Secretary-General for his statement.

I shall now give the floor to those members of the Council who wish to make statements before the vote.

I call on Her Excellency Ms. Condoleezza Rice, Secretary of State of the United States of America.

Ms. Rice (United States)

I am pleased to join all here today to support this important draft resolution. We have been brought to this day by the good faith and the hard work of many in the international community. I especially want to thank you, Secretary-General Annan. I want to thank French Foreign Minister Douste-Blazy for his hard work and for his Government's work, as well as the co-sponsors of the draft resolution. But of course we owe the fullest gratitude to Prime Minister Siniora of Lebanon and his Government and to Prime Minister Olmert of Israel and his Government. These democratic leaders have served their people courageously through this extremely trying and tumultuous time.

With the passage of this draft resolution, the international community will help to open a path to lasting peace between Lebanon and Israel that will end the suffering and the violence of the past month. The status quo that precipitated this conflict was unstable. Since the conflict began, we have sought an immediate end to the fighting. But we have also insisted that a durable ceasefire requires a decisive change from the status quo that produced this war. Today's draft resolution lays the foundation to achieve that goal, for with this draft resolution a new, stronger, Lebanon can emerge, with the world's help. Now the hard and urgent work of implementation begins.

Today's draft resolution accomplishes three important objectives. First, it puts in place a full cessation of hostilities. There is an insistence on an unconditional release of abducted Israeli soldiers. Hizbollah must immediately cease its attacks on Israel, and Israel must halt its offensive military operations in Lebanon, while reserving the right of any sovereign State to defend itself. It is my understanding that the Lebanese Cabinet will vote on Saturday concerning the resolution, and the Government of Israel on Sunday. As the Secretary-General has just noted, he will help the parties to establish a timeline for the implementation of this very important cessation of hostilities.

In addition to respecting the draft resolution's call for a full cessation of hostilities, we believe that all parties should take action to protect civilians, as was called for in the four principles of the 1996 understanding. We urge the Governments of Lebanon and Israel to commit to ending large-scale violence. Hizbollah faces a clear choice between war and peace, and the world should help to ensure that that choice is the right one.

Secondly, this draft resolution will help the democratic Government of Lebanon to expand its sovereign authority, as called for in resolution 1559 (2004). It will do so by creating a new international force that builds on the current United Nations force in Lebanon, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). Although it will bear the same name, this will not be the same force; it will be an enhanced UNIFIL. As the Government of Lebanon has requested, this new force will have an expanded mandate, a greater scope of operations, better equipment and much larger numbers -- a target of 15,000 soldiers, a sevenfold increase in its current strength.

The Lebanese armed forces, together with the new stabilization force, will deploy to the South of the country to protect the Lebanese people and to ensure that no armed groups like Hizbollah can threaten stability. As that deployment occurs, Israel will withdraw to behind the Blue Line. Today's draft resolution makes clear that these are parallel processes, and it also calls for the opening of Lebanese harbours and airports, which we expect will be for verifiably civilian purposes.

With the deployment and the withdrawal, a full ceasefire will go into effect. The Council has said that it intends to adopt another draft resolution with further measures to help that ceasefire become permanent. We also look forward to the Secretary-General's proposals to fully implement resolutions 1559 (2004) and 1680 (2006), including the question of disarmament. To further strengthen Lebanon's democracy, the international community will also impose a binding embargo on all weapons heading into that country without the Government's consent. Today, we call upon every State, especially Iran and Syria, to respect the sovereignty of the Lebanese Government and the will of the international community.

Finally, the draft resolution clearly lays out the political principles to secure a lasting peace: no foreign forces, no weapons and no authority in Lebanon other than that of the independent Lebanese Government, which must have complete sovereignty over its entire country. Those principles represent a long-standing international consensus that was first expressed in United Nations resolution 425 (1978), then affirmed in the Taif Accords and reaffirmed in resolutions 1559 (2004) and 1680 (2006). On 16 July, the Group of Eight leaders endorsed the same political conditions in Saint Petersburg, and 10 days later the Lebanon Core Group supported those principles in the Rome conference.

The draft resolution also offers a way forward to implement resolution 1680 (2006), which addresses the delineation of the Lebanese border, including the Sheba'a farms. We must ensure Israel's security and respect the underlying framework to achieve a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the region, in accordance with resolution 425 (1978).

Today in no way marks the end of our common efforts. In many respects, the hard work of diplomacy is only just beginning. In many respects, although it is our hope that the draft resolution will lead to the cessation of large-scale hostilities, no one can expect an immediate end to all acts of violence. The conditions of a lasting peace must be nurtured over time, with the good will of the Lebanese and Israeli Governments and with the sustained commitment of the international community that we have undertaken here.

Our most pressing challenge now is to help thousands of displaced people within Lebanon to return to their homes and rebuild their lives. The reconstruction of Lebanon will be led by the Government of Lebanon, but it will demand the generosity of the entire international community. For its part, the United States will continue working with the Governments of Lebanon and Israel to ease the suffering of the Lebanese people. Let me join the Secretary-General in applauding the extraordinary work of humanitarian workers and United Nations workers who, at great risk to themselves, have taken up the cause of suffering people during this turbulent time.

The United States has already committed substantial resources to the humanitarian efforts in Lebanon and Israel. In the critical days and weeks following a cessation of hostilities, we plan to do even more -- beginning now -- by increasing our immediate assistance to Lebanon to $50 million. The United States will coordinate closely with other major donors, with the international financial institutions and with all who are committed to Lebanon's future. We will also encourage the active involvement of the private sector in Lebanon's reconstruction. Through our common efforts, we must help the people of Lebanon to emerge from this conflict more prosperous and stronger than ever.

The past month has been marked by overwhelming suffering, heartache and loss, both in Lebanon and in Israel. The draft resolution is refreshingly clear that this tragedy began six years after Israel withdrew completely from Lebanon and Hizbollah crossed an international boundary, captured and killed Israeli soldiers and began firing thousands of rockets into Israeli cities. Hizbollah and its sponsors have brought devastation upon the people of Lebanon, dragging them into a war that they did not choose and exploiting them as human shields.

The people of the Middle East have lived too long at the mercy of extremists. It is time to build a more hopeful future. The draft resolution shows us the way. It is now the solemn responsibility of the international community to help the people of Lebanon and the people of Israel to transform this tragedy into opportunity -- an opportunity to overcome old patterns of violence and to build a new foundation for stable, sustainable and comprehensive peace.

We have embarked upon an ambitious course. Yet it is the right course. It is the only realistic and effective course, and we must see it through, for it is the only way to help the people of Lebanon, the people of Israel and all the people of the Middle East secure the lasting peace that they both desire and deserve.

The President

I now call on His Excellency Mr. Philippe Douste-Blazy, Minister for Foreign Affairs of France.

Mr. Douste-Blazy (France)

Finally, the Security Council is deciding to put an end to the war in Lebanon and Israel. Finally, it is putting an end to the destruction, to the plight of hundreds of thousands of displaced people on both sides of the border, to an economic and humanitarian situation that has grown more and more tragic with each passing day. Today, the international community is shouldering its responsibilities; we are shouldering our responsibilities. Certainly, the time spent in negotiations seemed, for some, to delay the moment of decision, but for France and for the entire Security Council, it was a matter of reaching a long-term comprehensive and political solution.

Since the beginning of the conflict, France has called for an immediate cessation of hostilities, a lifting of the blockade imposed on Lebanese ports and airports, and the return of displaced civilians. We must then create the conditions for a way out of the crisis so that we can swiftly achieve a lasting ceasefire. The stability and equilibrium not only of Lebanon and Israel, but of the entire region, depend on it.

The settlement on which we have worked must, as the President of the French Republic has emphasized, respect a twofold imperative. It must allow Lebanon's sovereignty to be restored throughout its entire territory and it must guarantee Israel's right to security.

France has played a very active part in the search for a solution. France is linked to Lebanon by deep historical and cultural ties and by strong and ongoing relations with the countries of the region. We are also very attached to the sovereignty and the independence of that country. On the strength of that imperative and of our close ties with all the actors, France wishes to reaffirm Israel's right to security.

It is from that perspective, too, and in that spirit that France worked intensively with its partners, including the United States -- which I would like to thank for its support, and in particular Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice -- to craft a draft resolution that takes all of those elements into account.

Decisive elements have come into play that have enabled the present result. The Council of Ministers of Lebanon announced its intention to deploy its army in southern Lebanon with the support of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). France welcomed that initiative, which it deems to be a major event. It is an historic turning point for that country.

The deployment of Lebanon's army is an essential element for restoring the sovereignty and authority of Lebanon throughout its entire territory. Furthermore, that decision meets a recurrent demand of the international community that is reiterated in many resolutions. We were duty-bound to respect that decision. It was our responsibility to take note of it.

Both Lebanon and Israel submitted certain demands to us. They shared certain expectations with us. France heeded them and the international community responded to them. That is the thrust of today's draft resolution. That seems to us the best guarantee for a lasting ceasefire and for a long-term solution.

The main thing, first of all, is to secure a cessation of hostilities and to immediately start a process that will lead to the deployment of the Lebanese army in the South, with the assistance of a reinforced UNIFIL. That will occur concomitantly with the gradual, progressive withdrawal of the Israeli army south of the Blue Line. It is also essential to begin resolving border issues, particularly that of the Sheba'a farms. That question goes to the heart of the conflict. For the first time, today's draft resolution starts a process, under the auspices of the Secretary-General, to address that question. In that respect, the Security Council has taken due note of the seven-point plan of Mr. Siniora.

Finally, we wanted to set down from this moment the principles and elements of a lasting ceasefire and a comprehensive political solution. Through today's draft resolution, the Security Council is responding to the request of the Lebanese authorities that UNIFIL be strengthened by a proposed 15,000 servicemen. I should like on this occasion to pay solemn tribute to the United Nations personnel in Lebanon who have demonstrated self-denial and courage in this crisis, some of whom, unfortunately, have paid with their lives for their devotion to the cause of peace.

I should like to make it clear that the mandate that the Security Council is giving UNIFIL is not one that imposes peace. UNIFIL will help the Lebanese Government in several of its missions, including the deployment of its army to the South, humanitarian assistance to the people and assistance to help displaced persons return. It will also be responsible for monitoring the cessation of hostilities, and then for observing compliance by the parties with the permanent ceasefire and the Blue Line.

We call upon all the parties to strictly respect the personnel, equipment and premises of the United Nations, whose security must be guaranteed in all circumstances. France, finally, believes it crucial that many countries respond favourably and expeditiously to the request of the Lebanese authorities by contributing to a reinforced UNIFIL. France is already present in UNIFIL and will consider, alongside its European partners, the possible supplementary support that it may be able to give to the Force.

I express the hope that today will be the first day of restored peace and stability in the Middle East. It is important that what the Security Council is offering Lebanon today, the international community offer the Palestinian people in the future. The lives and the hope of millions of people who are counting on us are at stake. At stake, too, is the future of an entire region that has suffered too much and must find peace once again. The message of the international community is clear. We need to replace a culture of hatred, mistrust and rejection with a culture of trust, mindfulness and dialogue.

The President

I now call on the First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Qatar, His Excellency Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem bin Jabr Al-Thani.

Sheikh Al-Thani (Qatar)

At the outset, I would like to thank the delegations of France and the United States for their recent efforts to improve the language of the draft resolution submitted by them to the Security Council on the situation in the Middle East.

While thanking them for taking into consideration some of the important points that we have raised regarding the substance of the draft resolution, I reaffirm our position that, for the sake of stopping the bloodshed of innocents, the Security Council should have adopted a resolution providing for an immediate ceasefire from the very first day of the current hostilities and should have dealt with other questions subsequently.

However, that conviction does not necessarily indicate our satisfaction with the adoption of a draft resolution that lacks balance and overlooks the accumulated, complicated historical, social and geopolitical factors that have culminated in the current situation in the region. The draft resolution fails to adequately take into consideration the interests, unity, stability and territorial integrity of Lebanon. Therefore, we still have some comments regarding the draft resolution.

The draft resolution does not clearly and explicitly address the horrors of destruction caused by the Israeli aggression against innocent civilians and the Lebanese infrastructure. Moreover, it does not clearly spell out Israel's legal and humanitarian responsibility for that destruction or address in a balanced manner the question of the Lebanese prisoners, detainees and abducted persons in Israeli prisons, despite the fact that the exchange of prisoners and detainees is the logical and realistic way to settle this question.

Nevertheless, we have accepted the draft resolution in its present form in order to stop the bloodshed of innocents and to spare Lebanon and the region further horror and destruction.

It is our understanding that, once the draft resolution is adopted, it obligates both parties to halt hostilities and provides for the immediate withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon, and that any breaches committed between the end of hostilities and the achievement of withdrawal and a ceasefire will be governed by the April Understanding of 1996. In addition, the draft resolution will lead to the reopening of the Lebanese ports and airports and the return of the displaced persons to their homes immediately upon its adoption. It is also our understanding that the draft resolution assigns sole responsibility to the Lebanese Government for dealing with the armed phenomena in the South and that the area between the Blue Line and the Litani river is subject to the exclusive control of the Lebanese Government.

We welcome the fact that the draft resolution is limited to augmenting the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), that its mandate will continue to be subject to the provisions of Chapter VI of the Charter, and that, as I have been assured by the sponsors of the draft, any reference to international forces in the draft resolution means UNIFIL. On this occasion, we call upon the contributing States or those States that intend to contribute to UNIFIL to dispatch their forces promptly.

Furthermore, it is our understanding that the Secretary-General will urgently take all the necessary measures to settle the question of the Sheba'a farms in accordance with the provisions of the seven-point plan endorsed by the Lebanese Government in that regard. We are convinced that it is still possible for the Council to play an effective and substantive role in settling this crisis. We will work with peace-loving States in following up this question in the interest of security and stability in Lebanon.

I would like to single out paragraph 18 of the draft resolution, which stresses the need to achieve a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East. Failure to deal effectively and objectively with this crisis and its root causes has led to a great deal of turbulence and tension in the region, and this has manifested itself in the events unfolding in Lebanon and in Palestine. We have all witnessed -- and, regrettably, continue to witness -- the continued aggression against Gaza and its inhabitants.

I wish particularly to inform the Council that the Council of the League of Arab States has unanimously adopted a decision to resubmit the question of the Arab-Israeli conflict to the Security Council, now that everyone has recognized the failure of the peace process in its present form. All of the Arab States will submit an official request for the convening of a high-level meeting of the Security Council next September in order to agree on a new track towards the establishment of a just peace in the region within a set time frame.

The Security Council bears a major responsibility towards millions in the region whose lives and future are threatened by the conflict, which is turning their lives into an inferno. The Council must discharge that responsibility effectively, justly and fully.

The President

It is my understanding that the Council is ready to proceed to the vote on the draft resolution (S/2006/640) before it. If I hear no objection, I shall now put the draft resolution to the vote.

There being no objection, it is so decided.

The President

There were 15 votes in favour. The draft resolution has been adopted unanimously as resolution 1701 (2006).

I shall now give the floor to those members of the Council who wish to make statements after the voting.

I call on Her Excellency Ms. Dora Bakoyannis, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Greece.

Ms. Bakoyannis (Greece)

For the past month the world has borne witness to another tragic chapter in the history of the Middle East, an unbearable addition to the pain of that long-suffering region. The images of helpless children and mothers, wounded, sick and despondent victims on either side of the conflict, untold destruction and unimaginable pain, have haunted all of us. This has shown once more how much we, as an international community, have failed the hopes and dreams and aspirations of those people.

Greece, from the very first moment of the outbreak of the current crisis, has called for an immediate ceasefire. War is not and cannot be the answer to anything. Violence has never solved any problem. It only serves to breed more violence and to create a new generation full of hatred, devoid of hope and keen on revenge -- a nurturing field for extremism and terrorism.

The Middle East has been suffering from this never-ending cycle of vicious wars and unstable peace, broken promises, lost lives and unspeakable tragedy not for years, but for decades. History has proven time and again that neither victory on the battlefield nor blind violence against innocent civilians, neither suicide bombings nor Katyusha rockets, have ever solved, or ever will solve, the problems of the Middle East -- or any other region for that matter. These are issues that need political solutions brought about through diplomatic means, in a spirit of compromise, mutual respect and acceptance.

The resolution we have just adopted here today is trying to do precisely that. It offers the basis for a political solution to this long-lasting -- and, admittedly, extremely difficult and complex -- problem. It also offers the framework for a political process with concrete goals and specific benchmarks and time frames.

Full respect for the sovereignty, political independence and territorial integrity of Lebanon is the first and foremost of those benchmarks. Security Council resolutions 425 (1978), 1559 (2004) and 1680 (2006) must be fully implemented. After all, it is a matter of principle that all Security Council resolutions must be fully respected and properly implemented.

In the past two years, the international community has done exceptional work in ridding Lebanon of any foreign presence. It is therefore not conceivable that it would accept foreign occupation of any part of Lebanese national territory. Occupation by any foreign force, anywhere in the world, is not admissible in any way or on any pretext. It is imperative for the Lebanese Government to take effective and immediate control of Lebanese territory in its entirety through the withdrawal of the Israeli military forces and the deployment of the Lebanese army. It is also imperative to proceed, as soon as possible, with the delineation of the international borders of Lebanon, including Sheba'a farms. The Secretary-General, in presenting his proposals, should take into consideration the seven points of the Siniora plan.

At the same time, Israel's legitimate security concerns are well understood and need to be properly addressed. We continue, though, to believe that, while preserving the right of self-defence, Israel must respect its obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law.

We see today's resolution as a first, but very important, step towards a lasting and sustainable peace. We are fully aware that a lot remains to be done. We need to make sure that this resolution is fully implemented. The bloodshed has to stop, and it has to stop now. The bombings have to stop, and they have to stop now. The suffering of the civilians has to stop, and it has to stop now.

Greece responded immediately to the enormous humanitarian effort under way in Lebanon. But the ongoing hostilities hamper our ability to reach those most in need and to alleviate their pain.

Now that the end of hostilities is hopefully in sight, we stand ready, together with the rest of the international community, and especially the countries of the region, to help in the enormous effort for the reconstruction of a shattered country, the immediate return of refugees to their homes and, hopefully, the dawn of a new day over both Lebanon and Israel.

It is in that respect that this resolution deserves our support and, even more important, deserves our commitment to work very hard in the coming days on the crucial steps that need to follow if we want our efforts to bring tangible results and not end in one more disappointing failure.

It is in that spirit that we call upon all parties to set aside their fears and disappointments and, difficult as it might be, to make the necessary commitment and effort to overcome the current crisis and build a better future for their peoples.

At this particularly critical juncture in the history of the Middle East, we must not lose sight of the bigger picture and allow ourselves to forget the suffering and the plight of the Palestinian people in the West Bank and Gaza. The question of Palestine, central to the whole Middle East conflict, should be addressed with the utmost urgency. As long as the Palestine issue remains unresolved, it is clear that there will be no peace in the region.

We must strive to create, as soon as possible, the necessary conditions for the genuine and earnest re-launching of a peace process for the achievement of a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East, based on all relevant Security Council resolutions, including resolutions 242 (1967), 338 (1973), 1397 (2002) and 1515 (2003), as well as on the Madrid terms of reference and the principle of land for peace, for the sake of the people in all of the region.

The President

I call now on Her Excellency Mrs. Margaret Beckett, M.P., Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Mrs. Beckett (United Kingdom)

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