By Catherine Triomphe of Agence France Presse: EU enters new era of Middle East influence with UN mission.

BRUSSELS (AFP) - European support for the UN force in Lebanon has thrust Europe into a major new political role in the Middle East, a region where it has traditionally been better known as a rich aid donor.

With nearly 7,000 soldiers pledged for the UN force in Lebanon, Europe’s commitment marks an “historic opportunity”, said Spanish Foreign Minister Miquel Angel Moratinos, himself a former special EU envoy to the region.

“The time has come for European efforts to relaunch peace in the Middle East,” he said Friday after his EU counterparts met in Brussels with UN chief Kofi Annan.

“Europeans are gaining more in credibility, in presence and engagement in the future of this region, which is our region,” he said Saturday.

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