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Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora said here Monday that his country will invite Germany to send troops as part of the UN peacekeeping mission in the southern part of the country bordering Israel. Siniora made the announcement at a joint press conference with his Pakistani counterpart Shaukat Aziz, who is on a four-nation trip to Norway, Britain, Turkey and Lebanon. The invitation will give the green light to the anticipated contribution of troops by Germany, which postponed a planned special cabinet meeting on Monday to discuss the possible deployment of peacekeepers in Lebanon.
Spokesman Ulrich Wilhelm told reporters that Germany had not received any formal request from Lebanon for it to send troops to join the UN peacekeeping mission in that country. Germany is willing to send 1, 200 soldiers and hundreds of military medics to join the UN peacekeeping mission in south Lebanon, according to German media. German Defense Minister Franz Josef Jung described the German military participation as battle duty. He said last week that the German troops could play a dominant role along the Lebanese coast against weapons smuggling.
Other European nations promising to contribute to the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon include Italy with 3,000 troops, France 2,000, Spain 1,200, Poland 500, Belgium 400 and Finland 250. Russia has also offered to send military personnel to help with the post-war reconstruction.
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