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| Japan To Stay In Iraq | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Sep 9 2005, 11:38 AM (259 Views) | |
| ikara | Sep 9 2005, 11:38 AM Post #1 |
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JAPAN is considering extending the mission of its defence forces in Iraq beyond a December 14 deadline with a view to pulling them out before the middle of next year, government sources said overnight. The extension was likely to be for a year and the government would make a final decision on when to withdraw the troops after considering political developments in Iraq by late December when a full-fledged Iraqi government was established, the sources said. Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has said he plans to decide on whether to extend the mission after Iraq's referendum on a new constitution in October and subsequent developments. But an extension beyond the December 14 expiration of the current mission would be unavoidable because even if the premier decided then to withdraw the troops, the pullout operation would take at least three months. "We cannot make a conclusion before assessing political developments through December," a senior Japanese government official said on condition of anonymity. Japan has some 600 troops in Iraq, 500 of which are providing medical services and rebuilding schools and roads in Samawah in southern Iraq. Advertisement: Australian troops protect their Japanese counterparts. To extend the mission, the Japanese government would revise the deployment period in the basic plan under a special measures law and then decide on the exact timing for withdrawal, the sources said. The United States unofficially approached Japan in June on extending its deployment in Iraq and was likely to oppose their withdrawal any time soon, the sources said. In August, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari sent a written request to Japanese Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura formally requesting that Japan extend the mission. The mission had been due to end last December but was extended until December 14 this year. Japan plans to build a thermal power plant in Samawah using funds from its budget for economic aid, with the aim of bringing it on-stream by mid-2007. http://redirect.news.com.au/servlet/jsp/Re...edirect=ni_news |
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3:03 PM Jul 13