Assistant U.S. Secretary of State David Welch said Saturday his talks with Lebanese officials were an important step toward ending the Lebanese-Israeli conflict, but cited difficult «challenges» still to be overcome. «My meeting today was an important step to putting behind us forever the terrible violence witnessed in the past three weeks, with a lasting political framework and an international force to support the Lebanese armed forces,» he told reporters after meeting with Prime Minister Fuad Saniora. «The challenges facing Lebanon today are much more difficult than we would have imagined weeks ago,» he added. Welch took no questions after issuing the brief statement, the Associated Press reported.
