Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni urged the international community to act as quickly as possible to deploy the force. Sporadic violence has marked the cease-fire that took hold Aug. 14 and ended 34 days of ferocious fighting, but the truce has thus far held.

"The extremists who want to inflame the region are watching us, and this will test the strength and determination of the international community," Livni said following a meeting with Italian Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema.

A separate controversy has developed over whether the international force will patrol the Lebanon- Syria border.

Israel insists a U.N. force take up positions along the border to cut off arms shipments to Hezbollah, while Syria says such a move would be a "hostile" act.

Saniora's Cabinet on Thursday affirmed its determination to uphold the cease-fire and called on the international community to send troops to free up the Lebanese army to patrol the country's borders. It did not directly address the issue of U.N. troops on the Syrian border.

The U.S. warned Syria to abide by a U.N. arms embargo meant to stop Hezbollah from resupplying after its monthlong war with Israel. It dismissed Syrian objections to international peacekeepers as preposterous.

"All countries must obey the arms embargo" under the U.N. Security Council resolution that set a cease-fire this month, said State Department spokesman Gonzalo Gallegos. "It is a singular duty for Syria, as the one country apart from Israel that borders Lebanon, to do so."

France had long pressed for a clearer mandate for the beefed-up force, and led a flurry of diplomatic activity with European and other nations to help clarify the force's rules of engagement.

"Regarding the rules of engagement, they must guarantee the force's free movement and its ability to act when faced with a possible hostile situation," Chirac said.

EU foreign ministers were scheduled to meet Friday in Brussels to discuss the force. Pressure on the Europeans has grown because Israel has rejected offers of participation from Malaysia, Bangladesh and Indonesia predominantly Muslim countries that do not recognize the Jewish state.

The United Nations was expected to hold a formal meeting Monday for countries that have expressed interest in contributing troops to Lebanon, a U.N. official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because there has been no official announcement.

The world body is hoping to nail down concrete numbers at that time so the deployment can begin quickly, the U.N. official said.

Other nations considering contributions to the force include Spain, Finland, Denmark, Germany, Greece, and Belgium. Turkey, Morocco, Nepal, New Zealand and China also are considering participating in the U.N. mission.

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