THE MIDDLE EAST: There has been cautious reaction from Security Council members to the UN Secretary General's proposal for an armed international force to halt the violence in the Middle East. Mr Kofi Annan is expected to brief the Council this week on the implications of his proposal.
The Secretary General caused a diplomatic stir when he told reporters during a visit to Geneva: "I think the proposition that a force should be sent in there to create a secure environment, as well as provide space for diplomatic and political negotiations, can no longer be deferred."
Stressing the need for the force he added: "It is urgent; it is imperative. That capacity exists in the world today, we must now muster the will."
Mr Annan explained later he was talking about a force that would enable assistance to reach those in need, end the killing and create the conditions for political and diplomatic talks. He was not referring to a buffer zone between the two sides. While the Secretary General's remarks caused considerable surprise, they were in line with his growing public involvement in efforts to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The 15-member Security Council was later briefed on Mr Annan's remarks by a senior UN official, Sir Kieran Prendergast. It is understood that only France welcomed and endorsed the idea. Britain reportedly highlighted the likelihood of Israeli objections in the current climate. The implication of Mr Annan's remarks was that a "coalition of the willing" would be assembled, similar to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan.
Although endorsed by the UN, it would not be a UN operation as such. Whereas Ireland, as a member of the Security Council, has supported the idea of a third-party monitoring mission, the Secretary General clearly feels that the time for this has passed.
Senior diplomatic sources at the UN said the key question arising from the Secretary General's statement was, "How much has he co-ordinated his thinking with Colin Powell?"
Mr Annan has good personal relations with the US Secretary of State, who met President Arafat in Ramallah yesterday. Sources said: "He is very friendly with Powell, talks to him very frequently on the telephone, and they were, of course, in each other's company as recently as Wednesday in Madrid." The two men met at talks in the Spanish capital involving representatives of the US, Russia, the UN and the EU.
A UN spokesman said in New York that the Secretary General was speaking about a multinational force, which could be assembled and deployed more quickly than a UN force. "He's hoping that the Council will keep in mind the experience of Bosnia, where the carnage was allowed to carry on for years before a meaningful international fighting force was put in place," the spokesman, Mr Fred Eckhard, told a press briefing. "So he wants a force that's strong enough not to be challenged, and one that can secure the environment so that negotiations can be conducted and the Palestinian Authority can rebuild its capacity to govern."
But he stressed such a body would not be deployed against the wishes of either side in the conflict. "The Secretary General does not have in mind a force that would go in over the objections of one of the parties," he said.
"In his judgment, an observer mission would not be up to the task, given how far the situation in the area has deteriorated." The idea was still "only just a concept" and the Secretary General did not yet have concrete plans concerning the composition of the force, Mr Eckhard concluded.
The Security Council has also been receiving private briefings on the humanitarian aspects of the situation in the West Bank. Members were told that after the killing of 13 Israeli soldiers in Jenin camp last Tuesday, the Israeli army stopped its house-to house operations and instead resorted to bombardment, reducing much of the camp to rubble.
Claiming that many people were trapped in the rubble, Palestinian representatives privately requested that Council members ask the Israeli authorities to allow rescue operations.
Ireland made the requested approach but was told that: (a) no people were trapped and (b) the buildings probably contained unexploded bombs. The Council was also told of the difficulties experienced by the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and other agencies in gaining access to Jenin camp to assess the damage and the humanitarian situation.