JERUSALEM - Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Wednesday that Israel's three-week-old offensive against Hezbollah guerrillas will stop only once a robust international peacekeeping force is in place in southern Lebanon.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert speaks to Reuters during an interview at his Jerusalem office August 2, 2006. [Reuters]

In an interview in his Jerusalem office, Olmert also said the release of two Israeli soldiers captured by Hezbollah must be unconditional, signaling Israel does not favor a prisoner swap.

The prime minister also predicted that the outcome of the Lebanon fighting will create "new momentum" for Israel's plan to separate from the Palestinians by withdrawing from much of the West Bank. He had harsh words for Syrian leaders, calling them "reckless," "immature," and promoters of terror.