U.S., France Fail to Produce Lebanon Truce Resolution [View All]

[Purveyor]

Aug. 10 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. and France failed to produce an agreement at the United Nations on a resolution to end the war in Lebanon between Israel and Hezbollah, Russia's ambassador said as he offered his own proposal for a 72-hour cease-fire.

``We do not have an immediate prospect'' that the U.S.-French resolution will be accepted, Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said today after envoys representing the five permanent members of the Security Council met in New York. Churkin said Russia's resolution will call for an immediate cessation of hostilities, intended to allow delivery of humanitarian aid.

The U.S.-French draft would have left Israeli forces in place in southern Lebanon until the Lebanese, assisted by an international force, take control of the area. Arab leaders want the UN to demand an immediate withdrawal of Israeli soldiers.

Today's talks foundered over Lebanese objections to language in the resolution that would give UN-backed international peacekeeping troops the authority to use force to disarm or expel Hezbollah, according to Ben Chang, deputy spokesman for the U.S. mission at the UN

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