欧美文化:Spain keen to support UN peace operations in Lebanon: PM

BEIRUT, Dec. 28 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Wednesday affirmed his country's keenness to support the work of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), the National News Agency reported.

"The Spanish battalion is the largest of the participating teams in UNIFIL since 2006," Sanchez said.

The prime minister's remarks came during his visit to Beirut, capital of Lebanon where he also inspected the Spanish battalion operating within the framework of UNIFIL.

Sanchez praised Lebanon for hosting Syrian refugees and expressed his understanding of "Lebanon's insistence to guarantee the voluntary return of the displaced to their homeland," noting Spain will make every effort "through the European Union to support Lebanon in this regard."

Meanwhile, Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati thanked Spain for its participation in the UNIFIL with a battalion of more than 600 peacekeepers, noting it is the largest Spanish military force outside its country.

Mikati also vowed all-out efforts to identify those who attacked the UNIFIL Irish peacekeepers on Dec. 14 and bring them to justice.