ITALY OFFERS TO HEAD U.N. PEACEKEEPERS
By MARIA SANMINIATELLI, Associated Press Writer August 21, 2006
ROME - Prime Minister Romano Prodi said Monday he told U.N. Secretary-General
Kofi Annan that Italy
is willing to command the U.N. force in Lebanon,
news agencies reported.
Prodi said Annan would make
the decision about who would lead the force "after completing an analysis and discussions with the leaders of countries that
are interested in joining the mission," the Italian news agencies ANSA and Apcom reported.
"It is a decision that Kofi
Annan will take at the end of broad consultations," Prodi told reporters in the seaside resort of Castiglione della Pescaia.
"We will have a definitive solution in the coming days."