UN chief Kofi Annan to visit West Asia, Europe

United Nations, Aug 24: UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan will be visiting West Asia and Europe later this week in a trip aimed at strengthening the peace process in Lebanon and Israel following the formal cessation of hostilities there in the wake of an August 11 Security Council resolution.

Mr Annan will travel to Brussels tomorrow where he will be attending a European foreign ministers' meeting to promote troop contributions to the expanded UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), his spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters yesterday at UN headquarters in New York.

The secretary-general will then head to Lebanon and Israel to meet the officials of both countries to encourage them to implement their commitments under Resolution 1701, adopted unanimously by the Council to end the month-long conflict in West Asia.

This resolution calls for both sides to "support a permanent ceasefire and a long-term solution" to the conflict while respecting several principles, including ensuring that the area between the Blue Line and the Litani River in southern Lebanon is free of armed personnel and weapons other than those of the Lebanese armed forces and UNIFIL.

Mr Dujarric informed that Mr Annan will also visit Palestine, Qatar, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan, and may go to Syria and Iran as well.

Responding to a question, Mr Dujarric said the issue of Israel's sea blockade of Lebanon would be raised during Mr Annan's visit, adding it is important that Lebanon be able to use its ports freely so that commercial activity and regular traffic can resume.

Talks were held on this issue by Secretary-General's delegation yesterday in Berlin with Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and other German officials.

Mr Annan's Special Political Adviser Vijay K Nambiar, a former envoy of India to the United Nations, and the UN chief's Special Envoy Terje Roed-Larsen have already visited Israel and Lebanon over the weekend.

UNI