UNITED NATIONS – France and America plan to co-sponsor a Security Council resolution to denounce Syria’s political domination of Lebanon, several U.N. sources said yesterday.

The draft resolution, which has yet to be shown to most council members and could come as early as today , would denounce the presence of 20,000 Syrian troops in Lebanon despite several previous resolutions urging all foreign forces to leave the country, and will seek to end to Syrian interference in Lebanon’s politics.

“All we are trying to do is to restate that everyone should stay out of Lebanon,” a State Department official told The New York Sun yesterday. A French diplomat confirmed that Paris is cooperating on the resolution.

The new diplomatic initiative came after the Lebanese Constitution was changed late last week, extending the term of the president, Emile Lahoud, after its November expiration. The change would virtually assure the Syrian-backed Mr. Lahoud stays in office for three more years after the end of the constitutional six year term limit.

A letter sent yesterday by the Lahoud-controlled Lebanese Foreign Ministry to the president of the Security Council said the draft resolution would set a dangerous precedent, arguing it “contradicts international law and norms.” If passed, the resolution would turn the council into “a tool for intervention in Lebanon’s internal affairs.”

State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said yesterday, “We and others care very much about what happens with Lebanon and the Lebanese Constitution.” The Lebanese, he added, “should be able to figure their own future free of all and any outside interference.”

Lebanon has been occupied by Syrian troops since 1976. The Syrian presence was backed by a 1990 agreement known as the TAIF accord, which was negotiated with the help of U.N. official Lakhdar Brahimi, who at the time was an Arab League official.

Several consequent council resolutions called on all foreign forces to leave the country, and in 2000 the U.N. certified that all Israeli forces in southern Lebanon had left the country. Syria remained, however, virtually controlling all aspects of Lebanese life.

Last year, President Bush signed the Syrian Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act, which threatened Damascus with sanctions if it does not end its support of terrorism and its occupation of Lebanon. The Lebanese opposition has become more vocal since then, with more daring to challenge the Syrian-backed president.

On Friday, Mr. Lahoud’s Cabinet amended the constitution in a hurried session. The Syrian-backed bill would go to the 128-member Parliament, where it is assured to pass by an automatic majority. Oppositionists have challenged the move, including reportedly Prime Minister Hariri, who is close to President Chirac.