US and France seek deal on resolution to end Israeli-Hezbollah conflict
The United States and France tried to bridge differences today over a timetable for an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon and reach agreement on a UN resolution that would end the month-long conflict between Israel and Hezbollah militants.
As international pressure intensified for the UN Security Council to finally take action that would stop the fighting, the US and French ambassadors who co-sponsored the resolution met with their Russian, Chinese and British counterparts to discuss the latest draft.
The ambassadors emerged saying there were still differences and tricky issues to be resolved, but US Ambassador John Bolton and his Chinese colleague held out the possibility that the problems could be resolved today so the resolution could be put in final form for a vote tomorrow.
Before that is done, however, the Americans and French want to make sure that a resolution is acceptable to the Israelis and the Lebanese, who rejected their original draft circulated on Saturday.
