Belgium to send 394 troops to Lebanon

Belgium would send nearly 400 troops to join the enlarged UN peacekeeping force in south Lebanon, Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt said on Friday.

"There will be an initial 302 Belgian peacekeepers, and that will rise to 394, so almost 400," Verhofstadt said.

The Belgian troops would include mine-sweeping, medical and reconstruction units, he added.

Prior to the announcement, Verhofstadt met with UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, pledging that Belgium was to make "an important contribution" to the peacekeeping mission.

"I think it's our duty to take part," he said, "We will take our responsibility."

Belgium had taken time to make the commitment, as it waited for clarification on the rules of engagement and guarantees on safety.

Earlier this week, Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht travelled to the Middle East and discussed the issue with Israeli and Lebanese officials, and apparently received sufficient guarantees.

The UN hopes to deploy 15,000 peacekeepers in south Lebanon to maintain the ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel. The European countries have been asked to contribute 9,000 troops.

France, which has traditional influences in the region, on Thursday announced that it would send a total of 2,000 soldiers to Lebanon, after being widely criticized for having just deployed 400 troops.

Source: Xinhua