French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin said Wednesday that France wants to "go further" in committing troops to Lebanon "once conditions are fulfilled".

"Today we're the country that's the most committed and present on the ground. We want to go further once conditions are fulfilled, "Villepin said after meeting with Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni in Paris, noting that France had doubled its contingent in the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and planned to send 1,700 people bringing a logistic support.

"It is extremely important for France -- with our strong experience in Lebanon, with international experience in other arenas -- that all guarantees can be supplied for an effective deployment of UNIFIL on the ground," he said, ensuring Livni to " go further, with Israel and all the countries of the region in a spirit of responsibility for the good implementation of the resolution 1701".

The UN Security Council Resolution 1701, unanimously adopted on Aug. 11, gives a mandate for UNIFIL to swell from its current level of 2,000 troops to 15,000.

Source: Xinhua