Syria Rejects UN Call to Remove Troops From Lebanon

He blamed the United States and France for trying to manipulate the council and underlined it had taken no action in the face of the deadly Israeli offensive against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).

After days of diplomatic haggling, the 15-member UN Security Council unanimously agreed Tuesday on a statement calling on Damascus to comply with resolution 1559 adopted in September that demanded the military pullout.

The United States and France battled to get the statement adopted against strong opposition on the council, which only passed the September resolution with the minimum of nine votes in favor and six abstentions.

The statement calls on UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to report back to the council every six months on the implementation of resolution 1559, which also demands the disarming of Hizbullah resistance movement, which drove Israel out of southern Lebanon in 2000 after 22 years of occupation.

"We all know that the resolution would not be implemented overnight," French ambassador Jean-Marc de La Sabliere told reporters. "We will now look forward to the next report when it comes six months from now."

No Threat to Peace

Syrian ambassador Fayssal Mekdad said that the Syrian presence in Lebanon is no threat to world peace and security

"Syria is very much committed to continue helping the Lebanese brotherly people until a final agreement is reached, as requested by the Lebanese government, vis-a-vis the Syrian presence in Lebanon," he said.

Syria is the main power broker in Lebanon and the current furor was set off when the Lebanese parliament changed the constitution to allow President Emile Lahoud to stay in office for an extra term.

It is believed that Syria has around 16,000 troops on the ground in Lebanon, the remains of a much larger force sent in during Lebanon’s 1975-1990 civil war, and both Beirut and Damascus insist the troops are there by mutual agreement.

However, Syria began redeployment of its troops in Lebanon on September 21, in the face of heavy international pressures.

The Arab world has repeatedly pointed the finger at the United States over Security Council action in the Middle East, in particular Washington’s regular use of its veto power to block resolutions criticizing Israel.

The United States vetoed a resolution earlier this month calling for an end to Israel’s Gaza Strip offensive, a move that many in the Arab world saw as a sign of double standards of US policy in the Middle East.

Deputy US ambassador Anne Patterson said the new council statement was a "strong signal" because it had been adopted unanimously — which came after the reporting period for Annan was changed from every three months to every six.

"It will keep Syria’s feet to the fire on complying with the requirements of the resolution," she said.