French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barro has unveiled a joint proposal with the United States for a 21-day ceasefire in Lebanon to prevent the situation deteriorating into all-out war.

We have been working with our American partners in recent days on a temporary 21-day ceasefire to pave the way for negotiations,’ Barro said in a speech to an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council, held at the request of France. This proposal will be announced soon and we are counting on the parties to accept it.

The French foreign minister warned that the situation in Lebanon today risks reaching a ‘point of no return’, noting that the tensions there threaten to push the region into an all-out conflict with unpredictable consequences..

The Franco-US proposal follows extensive discussions on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, where efforts

to bring about a ceasefire in Lebanon were discussed.