UNITED NATIONS (AP) – The United Nations got pledges Thursday of 3,500 troops for an expanded U.N. peacekeeping force in Lebanon, but it was unclear whether the soldiers represented the right mix of countries and units and could deploy very quickly.

Bangladesh made the largest offer of up to 2,000 troops but France offered just 400, a disappointment to some who expected more from the country likely to lead the force.

Deputy Secretary-General Mark Malloch Brown told a meeting of nearly 50 potential troop contributing countries that at least 3,500 new troops are needed in south Lebanon within 10 days to expand the 2,000-strong U.N. force trying to help maintain an uneasy truce between Israel and Hezbollah militants.

“We have it in quantitative terms,” he told reporters after the three-hour closed-door meeting. “But the issue is … which battalions can we get there in the timeline required? Are they the right battalions with the right skills and equipment, and do they represent a multilateral enough group of countries?”

“The show is on the road, we are in business – but a lot of work to be done in the coming days to meet the deadline,” he said.

“Every moment we delay is a moment of risk that the fighting could re-erupt,” he told the meeting.

According to U.N. diplomats, Bangladesh pledged two mechanized battalions, Indonesia pledges one mechanized battalion and an engineering company, Malaysia pledged one mechanized battalion and Nepal pledged one mechanized infantry battalion.

Battalions range from 600 to 1,000 soldiers, depending on the country. Yahya Mahmassani, the Arab League’s envoy to the United Nations, said he had been officially informed that Bangladesh would contribute two battalions, totaling between 1,600 and 2,000 troops.

Britain’s U.N. Ambassador Emyr Jones Parry announced a “quite substantial” maritime and aviation commitment of 6 Jaguar aircraft, 2 AWACS surveillance planes, and one naval frigate. Britain also offered one of its base in Cyprus as a staging point, he said.

Germany’s U.N. Ambassador Thomas Matussek said he offered “a rather substantive maritime component which is so encompassing that it could patrol and secure the whole of the Lebanese coast to make sure that weapons or other related materials don’t get into Lebanon.” Germany also offered customs agents, police and border protection agents to patrol the Syrian border, he said.

Denmark pledged two ships for maritime patrol and many other countries said they would study the operational plans for the force and the draft rules of engagement before making any decisions, including Italy, Spain, Egypt, Belgium and Morocco, U.N. diplomats said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the meeting was closed.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State David Welch, who is in charge of the Mideast bureau, said that the United States does not plan to participate in the force. “Our history in Lebanon has not been a happy one,” he said this week.

The U.N. resolution that led to Monday’s cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah after a 34-day war authorized up to 15,000 U.N. peacekeepers to help 15,000 Lebanese troops extend their authority throughout south Lebanon, which Hezbollah controls, as Israeli troops withdraw. The aim is to create a buffer zone free of Hezbollah fighters between the Litani River and the U.N.-drawn border, about 18 miles to the south.

Malloch Brown said the draft rules of engagement call for the use of force to prevent hostile activities in the buffer zone and to resist attempts to prevent the U.N. force, known as UNIFIL, from discharging its duties. The rules also allow UNIFIL to use force in assisting the Lebanese government if asked to secure its borders to prevent foreign forces, weapons and ammunition from entering the country, he said.

France and Italy said earlier Thursday that the peacekeeping mandate is not explicit enough, and demanded the U.N. set clear rules of engagement for troops that would bolster the force.

A key concern is whether the force will be called on to disarm Hezbollah fighters, as called for in a September 2004 U.N. resolution.

“The role of this force is not large-scale disarmament of Hezbollah, but rather policing a political agreement where the Lebanese government and Hezbollah have agreed to disarm,” Malloch Brown said.

Some potential contributors are believed to be concerned about avoiding confrontation with Hezbollah or being caught in the middle of a future conflict.

Germany said it wouldn’t send any but is expected to provide logistical support.

Before the meeting, French President Jacques Chirac announced that France will immediately double its 200-strong contingent already in the U.N. force to 400. The announcement said Chirac told U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan in a phone call that France is prepared to command the strengthened force until February.

“We were disappointed,” Malloch Brown said. “We had hoped France would be able to do more.”

Italy has said it could quickly send as many as 3,000 soldiers – up from its current contribution of about 50 – but Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi’s office said that he was pushing for explicit ground rules.

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Associated Press Writer Jamey Keaten contributed to this report from Paris.

AP-ES-08-17-06 2158EDT