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Europe pledges 7,000 peacekeepers

Indian U.N. soldier and French soldier at UNIFIL base in Naqura, Lebanon

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BRUSSELS, Belgium (CNN) -- European countries have pledged to contribute almost 7,000 troops to a U.N. peacekeeping force in Lebanon.

After an emergency meeting of European Union foreign ministers in Brussels on Friday, France's Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy said between 6,500 to 7,000 troops would be sent.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who attended the meeting, told a news briefing that "more than half the force has been pledged today," referring to a U.N. goal of gathering a total contingent of 15,000.

"Europe is providing the backbone to the force," Annan said.

Annan said he had asked France to lead the force until the end of February. After that, Italy will provide the next commander.

Earlier, French President Jacques Chirac said he did not believe the U.N. force in Lebanon required 15,000 troops to secure peace in the region and called the figure excessive.

"My feeling is that the figure that was put forward at the beginning of discussions -- 15,000 for a reinforced UNIFIL -- was a figure that was quite excessive," he said at a joint press conference Friday with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

A U.N. resolution calls for the force in southern Lebanon to expand from 2,000 to up to 15,000.

The new troops will augment a small U.N. force already on the ground and Lebanese troops that are already being sent into southern Lebanon, a longtime Hezbollah stronghold.

France had only promised 400 troops, before Chirac said Thursday that it would enlarge the force to 2,000, and could continue leading it until February as planned.

The U.N. deployment is part of a cease-fire deal that ended hostilities between Israeli forces and Hezbollah fighters in southern Lebanon on August 14.

Belgium said Friday it would supply 302 troops to the U.N. force that will patrol southern Lebanon.

CNN's European Political Editor Robin Oakley said Germany, Greece, Spain, Finland and Denmark were set to make similar pledges.

Italy announced Tuesday that it was willing to lead the contingent and could contribute as many as 3,000 troops. (Full story)

Italy, Malaysia, India and Indonesia have already committed forces.

Annan, speaking after meeting Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt at the meeting in Brussels, said he hoped for more pledges Friday.

"I came with the hope that I will leave Brussels with a large number of soldiers," he said, according to The Associated Press.

U.S. President George W. Bush said he was pleased with Chirac's decision to send more troops.

"This is an important step towards finalizing preparations to deploy the United Nations Interim Force of Lebanon," he said.

"I applaud the decision of France, as well as the significant pledges from Italy and our other important allies. I encourage other nations to make contributions as well."

But Chirac said Thursday that France would be ready to continue its command of UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon) if the United Nations wished it to do so.

Currently, French Maj. Gen. Alain Pellegrini is in command of UNIFIL.

Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi's office said both the Lebanese and Israeli governments had contacted Rome about taking a leadership role in the U.N. force.

Oakley said Chirac was under pressure to send more troops because the French felt they had a special relationship with Lebanon because they were originally there under a League of Nations -- forerunner of the United Nations -- mandate. Chirac had also felt usurped by Prodi's pledge, said Oakley.

"France played a major role in pushing for a cease-fire resolution, but this would never have come about without a commitment to an international peacekeeping force," he said.

"They were under pressure to be seen to do more. Chirac justified the extra commitment by saying the rules of engagement of the U.N. peacekeeping force and chains of command had now been clarified. I think the EU foreign ministers will be also pressing Annan to further clarify those rules of engagement.

"Interesting diplomatic arm-wrestling has been going on behind the scenes. The Italians were keen to establish their credentials with the Arab world as Prodi believes his predecessor Silvio Berlusconi made a big mistake in backing U.S.-UK efforts in Iraq.

"Prodi expected to have a leadership role in Lebanon: he said he had spoken to Bush, who had been positive. Bush welcomed continued leadership from France so he's playing it both ways."

French arrivals

Oakley said the Spanish prime minister was also set to commit 600 to 800 troops to the force. Germany and Greece were expected to make naval contributions but not troops on the ground.

"The big question is whether this U.N. force will develop the necessary momentum and whether the Europeans will produce the 8,000 to 9,000 troops between them that the U.N. hopes for," Oakley added.

About 170 French troops pulled into the Lebanese port of Naqoura on Friday, bringing with them 75 pieces of machinery including trucks, bulldozers and armored personnel carriers.

The troops, like the 50 who arrived last week, are comprised of engineers who will lay the groundwork for additional French troops expected to strengthen the U.N. international force.

Rear-Admiral Xavier Magne with the French Navy said they will keep an off-shore ship with an airborne quick reaction force and a hospital. Magne said this was based on lessons learned from the 1980s when French and American barracks came under attack in Lebanon.