Israeli Vice Prime Minister Shimon Peres on Thursday thanked Italy for deploying the largest contingent of troops within the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, saying it was playing an "important role" in the region. Speaking on his arrival at Rome's Fiumicino airport, Peres said Italy had made "a courageous and important decision" to deploy its soldiers.

Referring to a suggestion by Italian Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema on extending the U.N. peace keeping mission to Gaza, Peres said this would depend on the situation in Lebanon.

"Let's wait and see: achieving peace in Lebanon would help," he said.

Peres said he hoped Italy's role in Lebanon would not be limited to putting soldiers on the ground but could be expanded to finding a political solution to the conflict.

On Tuesday, Italy sent an advance contingent of some 1,000 Italian soldiers to take part in the United Nations peacekeeping mission.

Italy has offered to deploy up to 3,000 soldiers, the biggest contingent in the multinational force which will be headed by France until February.

The peacekeeping force is entering southern Lebanon under U.N. Resolution 1701, which requires Hezbollah militants and Israel to end their military operations and obliges Israel to withdraw its troops as soon as the U.N. troops arrive.

Source: Xinhua