WASHINGTON, Aug 4: An immediate ceasefire in Lebanon is possible and can happen in days, says US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

In the most concrete signal yet that the US may be willing to support international calls for an immediate ceasefire, Ms Rice said on CNN’s ‘Larry King Live,’ broadcast on Thursday night, that a halt in fighting would be the first phase in ending the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.

Moving closer to the position that France and other European countries are taking, Ms Rice predicted that a UN Security Council resolution would be approved within days that would include a cease-fire and describe principles for a lasting peace.

Ms Rice said the US was moving “towards being able to do this in phases that will permit first an end or a stoppage in the hostilities and based on the establishment on some very important principles for how we move forward.”

Her statement indicates a major shift in the US attitude towards the war. Since the outbreak of the fighting on July 12, the Bush administration has insisted that the Hezbollah militia must be disarmed and an international peacekeeping force established before a cease-fire is enforced.

“We need to end the hostilities in a way that points forward a direction for a sustainable peace,” Ms Rice said.

“We’re certainly getting close,” she said. “We’re working with the French very closely. We’re working with others.”

Meanwhile, the US State Department has said that Secretary Rice and Defence Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld have approved a programme to help train and equip the Lebanese army once hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah are over.

The Lebanese army’s improved capabilities are essential for its collaboration with an international force along the Israel-Lebanon border and for the Beirut government to take control of the entire country, US officials said. Because the United States will not participate in the security force, it is offering to contribute with training and equipment, they said.

“Once we do have conditions on the ground permitting,” said State Department spokesman Sean McCormack. He said: “We can help the Lebanese armed forces exercise control and sovereignty over all of Lebanese territory.”

Mr McCormack offered no further details, saying only that other countries would help the US personnel who would be involved in the training. Nor was there word from Beirut on whether the government there would accept the Bush administration’s plan.