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Berlusconi vows to stay 'to the very end' with US in Iraq, bashes opposition Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi strongly defended Italy's military presence in Iraq, slamming the opposition for demanding a withdrawal from the US-led coalition and accusing them of serving the interests of the "enemies of democracy". "Italy will remain in Iraq and remain faithful to its military objectives for peace as long as the armed gangs are not defeated", he told parliament. "Italy considers that it is its duty and its honor to remain to the very end at the side of those who defend the United Nations...

Intriguing but unconfirmed rumours have reached Foreign Report that may have far-reaching consequences for the Coalition operation in Iraq, as well as Britain's domestic politics. According to the report, secret discussions may be under way concerning the Polish-commanded south-central multinational military division. There has been continuous speculation that the Poles, one of the biggest contingents in the Coalition force, will withdraw. While for the moment they are saying they will not follow the Spanish example, they have called for a "progressive reduction" of their 2,400 troops, as casualties rise (three dead, as well as their top war correspondent) and public...

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands - The Netherlands is reviewing participation in the U.S.-led stabilization force in Iraq (news - web sites) after a Dutch soldier was killed in a grenade attack, the prime minister said Tuesday. Jan Peter Balkenende said the death of the soldier Monday, the first casualty among the 1,300-strong Dutch contingent in southern Iraq, was not by itself a reason to leave the country. "Reconstruction will go on, with all the sorrow of today. The forces of terrorism will not win," Balkenende said, speaking on national television. But the Dutch will weigh their future deployment based on an expanded...

ROME, May 11 (Reuters) - Opposition leaders pressed Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi on Tuesday to withdraw Italian troops from Iraq following a prisoner abuse scandal that has rocked the U.S. and British governments. Berlusconi is due to meet U.S. President George W. Bush in Washington next week and centre-left opponents said he should use the visit to demand publicly the resignation of U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. "Our troops shouldn't stay a week more if the prime minister does not get Bush to sack Rumsfeld," said Francesco Rutelli, a close ally of Berlusconi's long-standing rival, European Commission President Romano Prodi....

LONDON, May 6 (Reuters) - Poland and Britain renewed their commitment to keeping troops in Iraq on Thursday and condemned the abuse of prisoners by soldiers in the U.S-led coalition. "An alliance is an alliance, we have obligations and we will carry them out," Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski told reporters after meeting Prime Minister Tony Blair during a state visit. He said Poland, which currently has 2,400 soldiers in Iraq, was prepared to send a third contingent of troops and aimed to withdraw only after stability was returned to Iraq. Britain is expected to confirm next week that it will...

LONDON (AP) - Britain is considering sending more troops to Iraq to fill the gap created by Spain's withdrawal of its 1,300 soldiers, an official in Prime Minister Tony Blair's government said Saturday. But Armed Forces Minister Adam Ingram told British Broadcasting Corp. radio that no decision had been taken and no formal request has been made. "That is something which clearly has to be considered given the fact that there is now a changed situation on the ground because of the withdrawal of the Spanish forces," Ingram said when asked if Britain would send more soldiers to Iraq. "We...

KIEV, April 28 (Reuters) - Ukraine lost its fifth soldier in Iraq on Wednesday, but vowed its peacekeepers would not pull out. The soldier was killed when his patrol came under attack from grenades and high-calibre machine guns about 60 km (40 miles) south of Kut, Ukraine's Defence Ministry said. Two other Ukrainians were wounded. The patrol withdrew with support from two U.S. helicopters. Two Ukrainians have died in previous attacks and three in accidents. President Leonid Kuchma offered his condolences to the family of the dead soldier, but said Ukraine's approximately 1,600 peacekeepers would stay in Iraq. "Our troops...

Spanish troops wave while driving towards the Kuwaiti frontier in a convoy of 33 vehicles from their bases in the Najaf and Diwaniya area of Iraq (news - web sites) April 27, 2004. Reversing the Iraq policy of his pro-U.S. predecessor Jose Maria Aznar, Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero's first decision after taking office was to announce he was pulling Spanish troops from Iraq as soon as possible.

WARSAW, Poland - Poland's likely next prime minister said Tuesday that domestic pressure is building to set a timetable for an eventual pullout of its soldiers from Iraq, but he plans no imminent retreat. Marek Belka, who is expected to take over Sunday from Prime Minister Leszek Miller, said his remark reflects the mood among government and opposition parties whose backing he has been seeking to be confirmed as the new leader. "Nobody is talking about bailing out of Iraq," said Belka, who until last month directed economic policy in Iraq under the U.S.-led coalition authority. "But everybody talks about...

The Norwegian military plans to have about ten Norwegian officers in Iraq after the engineer soldiers return home July 1. Foto: Kjetil Eide (Forsvaret)TV 2 Nettavisen got the statement confirmed by several sources. In addition to the about 150 Norwegian engineer soldiers who are stationed outside Basra, Norway has a total of ten staff officers stationed with the British and the Polish forces. «We have gotten indications from the Ministry of Defense that they are considered to continue for the rest of the year,» said Thom Knustad, press officer at Fellesoprativt headquarters, to TV 2 Nettavisen. Powell From a military...

WARSAW, Poland - Poland's likely next prime minister said Tuesday that domestic pressure is building to set a timetable for an eventual pullout of its soldiers from Iraq, but he plans no imminent retreat. Marek Belka, who is expected to take over Sunday from Prime Minister Leszek Miller, said his remark reflects the mood among government and opposition parties whose backing he has been seeking to be confirmed as the new leader. "Nobody is talking about bailing out of Iraq," said Belka, who until last month directed economic policy in Iraq under the U.S.-led coalition authority. "But everybody talks about...

SYDNEY, Australia (AP) — Amid tight security, Prime Minister John Howard paid a surprise visit Sunday to Australian troops in Iraq. "The trip to Iraq is in recognition of the great sacrifice and contribution Australian personnel are making there in challenging conditions," Howard's office said in a statement. "They are following in the footsteps of countless other Australians who have served the nation in many parts of the globe." Howard's visit was for a dawn ceremony at Baghdad International Airport to mark Anzac Day, Australia's main veterans' commemoration. It was Howard's trip to Iraq since he sent 2,000 troops to...

US losing face as Poles waver From agency correspondents in Washington and Baghdad April 23, 2004 PENTAGON chiefs are drawing up emergency plans for more troops and money in Iraq as the US-led coalition continues to splinter in the face of insurgent violence. Poland sent mixed signals about its troop commitment yesterday after the Dominican Republic followed Spain and Honduras in announcing that it would withdraw its troops from the country. Wednesday's co-ordinated car bombings in the southern city of Basra rocked the coalition because the British-controlled south had been an area of relative calm. The toll from the attack...

Anzac spirit patrols streets of Baghdad AS the death toll mounts in Iraq, Australian soldiers are playing a deadly game of cat and mouse on the dark streets of Baghdad. They move in small patrols through the war-torn city, silently scanning the rooftops and checking walled compounds for an attack that could come at any moment. During their two-hour night patrol, the paratroopers think their moment may have come when they find a man hiding in a construction site. With their Steyr assault rifles on him, the man emerges from the darkness and admits he's a neighbour just snooping around....

KARBALA, Iraq - Shiite Muslim militiamen clashed with Polish-led coalition troops in the holy city of Karbala on Friday, the latest skirmish between followers of a radical cleric and coalition forces in the south. One soldier was injured and taken to a military hospital for treatment, officials said. Militiamen attacked a military convoy made up of Polish, Bulgarian, Lithuanian and Latvian soldiers near city hall in the center of Karbala around the time of weekly Muslim prayers, said Lt. Col. Robert Strzelecki, spokesman for Camp Babylon, the main Polish base. Gunmen and soldiers exchanged fire. Strzelecki said he would withhold...

16:09 - 22.04.2004 Denmark Plans for Larger Role in Iraq COPENHAGEN(BGNES)- Denmark's 510 troops could expand their role in Iraq, the Danish army said on Thursday in a boost to the U.S.-led coalition being abandoned by other allies in the face of violence. Under the army plan, Denmark's 510 troops already based in southern Iraq would begin sharing control also around Basra -- in cooperation with British troops there. Army spokesman Christian Soerensen said the plan would be presented to Defence Minister Svend Aage Jensby on Thursday. "It's still something we're considering at the moment, but our decision will depend...

Poland wants to keep its troops on in Iraq after 30 June, but only if the Iraqi authorities so wish after the handover of power, Defence Minister Jerzy Szmajdzinski has said. "Poland's military presence in Iraq after 30 June depends on how the political process goes and the attitude of the provisional Iraqi government, which will decide whether it is interested in the presence of Polish armed forces," Szmajdzinski told reporters on Thursday. Szmajdzinski said Poland's military presence in Iraq after 30 June, when an Iraqi government is to take control from a US-led occupation authority, depended on wishes of...

<p>Warsaw , Apr. 22 (UPI) -- Poland's Defense Minister Jerzy Szmajdzinski said Thursday Polish forces would remain in Iraq at least until free elections can be held next year.</p> <p>Poland, a staunch ally of the United States, heads a multi-national force of some 9,500 troops, including around 2,500 of its own soldiers.</p>

Norway is the next coalition country to leave Iraq before June 30. According to Norwegian Foreign Minister Jan Petersen, his country sees as priority the peacekeeping mission of its troops in Afghanistan. Since Spain announced that it would pull out its 1,400 troops, Honduras, with 368, and the Dominican Republic, with 302, have also decided to withdraw their soldiers. Meanwhile, Thailand's prime minister said his country would withdraw its non-combat troops from Iraq if they were attacked. US Secretary of State Colin Powell has made phone calls this week to try to hold the rest of the 20-some coalition intact.

<p>Members of the U.S.-led Iraq coalition said yesterday that the decision of three countries to withdraw their troops from Iraq does not set a trend, while others said they were rethinking their position.</p> <p>Spain, which was the first coalition member to announce a pullout, sent its top diplomat to Washington to ease tensions resulting from the decision and assure the administration that Madrid wants a strong relationship.</p>

Whilst many countries are in the process of withdrawing their troops from Iraq, Denmark is considering a marked increase in its Iraqi engagement, as the Iraqi government takes over the control in the country june 30th. The Army's Operational Command, HOK, is currently negotiating with British coalition forces in Southern Iraq over a massive increase of the Danish area of responsibility from the current area north of Basra to including the entire area down to the Kuwaiti border, except for Basra proper which will remain under British command. The the main Danish base, Camp Eden, would be moved to the...

Polish Troops Will Stay in Iraq Despite Spanish Withdrawal, Official Says The Associated Press WARSAW, Poland (AP) - Poland is not considering a troop pullout from Iraq, despite the outgoing prime minister's comments on the subject, the government spokesman said on Wednesday. "Poland will be in Iraq as long as it necessary, until the situation there is stabilized," spokesman Marcin Kaszuba told The Associated Press. "Poland has not and is not considering a troop withdrawal." Earlier, the Polish news agency PAP quoted Prime Minister Leszek Miller, who leaves office early next month, as saying Poland "cannot turn a blind eye"...

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic — The Dominican Republic will pull its 302 troops out of Iraq early, and Thailand will withdraw its 451 medical and engineering troops if they are attacked, officials said... ...Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's government is facing increasing calls to withdraw the country's troops, who were sent last year to do humanitarian work in Karbala, about 60 miles south of Baghdad. "If we get hurt or killed, I will not keep them there," Thaksin told reporters...

Poland is planning to withdraw its troops from Iraq in the coming months, dealing another blow to the US-led coalition forces there. The revelation yesterday by a senior government adviser that Poland's 2,500 soldiers would leave Iraq comes just a day after the new Spanish Prime Minister, Mr José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, announced the pull-out of Spanish troops "as soon as possible". President Bush reacted to the Spanish decision by accusing Mr Zapatero yesterday of giving "false comfort to terrorists \ enemies of freedom in Iraq". The White House spokesman, Mr Scott McClellan, said that in a five-minute telephone call...

Citizens from more than 80 countries died that day – innocent men, women and children from across the globe. Within hours of the tragedy, coalitions involving many nations assembled to fight terrorism – literally hundreds of countries have contributed in a variety of ways – some militarily, others diplomatically, economically and financially. Some nations have helped openly; others prefer not to disclose their contributions. The United States began building the coalition on September 12, 2001, and there are currently 70 nations supporting the global war on terrorism. To date, 21 nations have deployed more than 16,000 troops to the U.S....

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) The Dominican Republic might follow Spain and Honduras in pulling its troops out of Iraq early despite a one-year commitment to the U.S.-led military force, the president said Tuesday.

SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea remains committed to deploying troops to Iraq despite the surge in violence there, but their task will remain purely reconstruction, the country's foreign minister said on Monday. Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon told reporters the government remained firmly committed to plans approved by parliament in February to send 3,000 troops in addition to the 600 that went to Iraq nearly a year ago. "This is not an issue of sending the troops because things are stable and not sending them because things are not," he told a news conference. South Korea holds a parliamentary election on...

DIWANIYAH, Iraq (AFP) - Spanish soldiers have begun preparing the handover of their positions in Iraq (news - web sites) to new coalition troops, commanders said insisting the departing troops had carried out their mission with honour, unbowed by recent attacks. AFP Photo Latest headlines: · U.S. Says June 30 Not 'A Magical Date' for Iraq Reuters - 6 minutes ago · U.S. Says Troops Killed 2 Iraq Reporters AP - 13 minutes ago · Iraq Leaders Create Tribunal for Saddam AP - 15 minutes ago Special Coverage The official line from officers at the Spanish base in Diwaniyah was...

MALAYSIA said today it would consider sending troops to Iraq for a US-proposed force meant to protect UN staff and facilities, but it wants the Washington-appointed administration to hand over political power to Iraqis first. "We have to study the situation very carefully," said Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is also defence minister. "Our position is that the administration of Iraq should be entrusted to the United Nations, and ultimately, to the people of Iraq. It is within this ambit that we will decide on anything." Malaysia, which is mostly Muslim, has in the past contributed peacekeepers to...

In his statement to the House of Commons yesterday, Tony Blair praised the work of the coalition in Iraq, insisted that the June 30 deadline for the transfer of power would hold and emphasised the unanimity of opinion between himself and President Bush. He was also wise to prepare public opinion for more difficulties before the move to a democratic Iraq begins in earnest. It has been a matter of fortune, as well as of sound planning, that Britain has not suffered a sharp rise in military casualties in the past month, nor a hostage incident as serious as that...

Secretary of State Colin Powell said Monday that one or more countries may follow Spain's lead and withdraw peacekeeping troops from Iraq "based on their own political situation." Hours later, Honduras said it was pulling out its 370 soldiers. ... Powell dismissed Woodward's suggestion that Bush already had made up his mind by Jan. 11 last year to go to war against Iraq and that Saudi Arabia's ambassador to Washington, Prince Bandar, had been informed of the decision that day.

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras (Reuters) - In a blow to President Bush and his coalition partners in Iraq, Honduras on Monday followed Spain in announcing it will pull its troops out of the country. "I have told the coalition countries that the troops are going to return from Iraq," Maduro said in a speech on national television and radio. "I have ordered... the carrying out of the decision taken in the shortest possible time and under safe conditions for our troops." Soldiers from Honduras, a strong U.S. ally in Central America, were sent to Iraq last summer as peacekeepers only and have...

ROME - European Commission (news - web sites) president Romano Prodi Monday praised Spain's decision to pull its troops from Iraq (news - web sites), saying the move could help mend the rift in Europe over the war as well as increase pressure to resolve the Iraqi crisis. Prodi, a former Italian premier widely considered the chief challenger to pro-U.S. Italian leader Silvio Berlusconi, rallied to Spain's defense during a gathering of the Olive Tree, the center-left political coalition he helped found as Italy's main opposition group. "Spain with this decision has come back to our line, while before it...

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush scolded Spain's new prime minister for his swift withdrawal of troops from Iraq and told him to avoid actions that give "false comfort to terrorists or enemies of freedom in Iraq." Bush expressed his views in a five-minute telephone call with Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, who on Sunday ordered the 1,300 troops to return home as soon as possible. Zapatero placed the call to Bush and the president "expressed his regret to President Zapatero about the decision to abruptly announce the pullout of Spanish troops from Iraq," White House press secretary Scott McClellan...

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Spanish troops will withdraw from Iraq in four to five weeks, a spokesman for the Polish contingent that commands a multinational peacekeeping force in Iraq said Monday. Polish Gen. Mieczyslaw Bieniek told reporters at the force's Camp Babylon headquarters that troops currently under Spanish command from El Salvador, Honduras and the Dominican Republic would stay put, Poland's PAP news agency reported. But he said it was unclear who would replace the 1,300 Spanish troops. Later Monday Spanish Defense Minister Jose Bono said Spain's force would leave in fewer than six weeks. "It would be imprudent to...

MADRID, April 19 (Reuters) - The process of withdrawing Spanish troops from Iraq has begun and will be completed quickly, Spain's new government said on Monday. "We have an operational plan," Defence Minister Jose Bono told a news conference after the new government's first cabinet meeting. "The process has started and will be completed rapidly." He did not make clear if he meant Spanish troops were already starting to leave Iraq or simply that new Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero had started the process by giving the order to pull out the troops as soon as possible.

Albania, a predominantly Muslim country, told the United States it was prepared to send more non-combat troops to Iraq (news - web sites), the government said Monday, in a possible expansion of the 71-member-strong contingent patrolling the northern city of Mosul under U.S. command. Despite the small number of Albanian forces, the public commitment from Tirana was bound to be welcome news to the United States after Spain's weekend announcement that it was withdrawing its 1,300-member contingent as soon as possible. Albanian Foreign Minister Kastriot Islami made the offer Friday in a letter to Secretary of State Colin Powell (news...

El Salvador, Honduras and the Dominican Republic are likely to follow Spain in recalling their troops from Iraq, the Spanish daily El Pais said on Monday. The 900 Central American troops from part of the Spanish-speaking Plus Ultra Brigade.They will find it difficult to operate in Iraq without Spain's support, according to the daily.Nicaragua has already pulled out by not replacing its 115 troops for lack of funds.Spain became the first major US ally to recall its troops when Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero announced their withdrawal on Sunday.The Socialist prime minister ordered the withdrawal of the 1,400 Spanish...

WASHINGTON - President Bush (news - web sites) scolded Spain's new prime minister for his swift withdrawal of troops from Iraq (news - web sites) and told him to avoid actions that give "false comfort to terrorists or enemies of freedom in Iraq." Bush expressed his views in a five-minute telephone call with Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, who on Sunday ordered the 1,300 troops to return home as soon as possible. Zapatero placed the call to Bush and the president "expressed his regret to President Zapatero about the decision to abruptly announce the pullout of Spanish troops from...

MADRID, Spain — Spain's prime minister on Sunday ordered Spanish troops pulled out of Iraq as soon as possible, fulfilling a campaign pledge to a nation recovering from terrorist bombings that Al Qaeda (search) militants said were reprisal for Spain's support of the war. Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero (search) issued the abrupt recall just hours after his government was sworn in, saying there was no sign the United States would meet his demand for United Nations control of the postwar occupation -- his ultimatum for keeping troops there. Zapatero's Socialist (search) party won the March 14 general election amid allegations...

Kerry Statement on Spanish Decision on Iraq U.S. Newswire 18 Apr 19:11 Statement from John Kerry on Spanish Prime Minister Zapateros Iraq Decision 4/18/2004 7:11:00 PM -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To: National and International desks, Political Reporter Contact: David Wade of John Kerry for President, 202-528-7475; http://www.johnkerry.com WASHINGTON, April 18 /U.S. Newswire -- John Kerry issued the following statement on Spanish Prime Minister Zapateros Iraq Decision: "I regret Prime Minister Zapateros decision. Spain and all the world have an interest in rebuilding an Iraq that is not a haven for terrorists and a failed state. I had hoped the Prime Minister would...

<p>LISBON, Portugal — Portugal will consider pulling its peacekeeping police out of Iraq if the fighting there worsens, the country's interior minister said Friday.</p> <p>"If, speaking theoretically, the conflict deepens and the police cannot carry out their mission, they will have to withdraw," Antonio Figueiredo Lopes (search) said in an interview with the public radio station Antena 1.</p>

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States expects other nations with forces in Iraq to reassess their position after Spain's decision to pull its troops out, President George W. Bush's national security adviser said on Sunday. White House spokesman Ken Lisaius also said Washington wanted the Spanish withdrawal to be made in a "coordinated, responsible and orderly manner" but offered no critique of Madrid's decision. Condoleezza Rice, speaking on ABC's "This Week" before the decision was announced in Madrid, said, "We know that there are others who are going to have to assess how they see the risk." "We have 34...

Filed at 3:30 p.m. ET MADRID (Reuters) - Spain's new Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said Sunday he had given orders for Spain's 1,300 troops in Iraq to come home as soon as possible. Zapatero made the surprise announcement in a televised statement just a day after he was sworn in as prime minister following his Socialist party's upset victory in a March 14 general election. His decision, taken much sooner than expected, creates more problems for the United States whose forces are locked in the fiercest fighting in Iraq since last year's war toppled Saddam Hussein. U.S. combat...

Spain's new prime minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero has given orders for Spanish troops in Iraq to be brought home in "as short a time as possible". In a televised address to the nation, he said he could not ignore what he called the will of the Spanish people. The previous government's support for the war in Iraq, and its handling of the Madrid bombings, were thought to have caused its election downfall. Spain has about 1,300 troops stationed in south-central areas of Iraq. Mr Zapatero said he had ordered the defence minister to "do what is necessary for the...

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SYDNEY (AFP) - Australia's main opposition party refused to back down on a pre-election pledge to withdraw troops from Iraq (news - web sites) by Christmas, despite warnings from Baghdad and Washington that this would damage the coalition. Iraqi Governing Council member Ahmad Chalabi urged Australia not to pull its troops from his war-torn country, echoing concerns voiced Saturday by Bush administration heavy hitters Paul Wolfowitz and Richard Armitage. Despite the pressure, Labor refused to alter its pledge and said there was no role for Australian troops in Iraq. "We are not central to the peacekeeping effort in Iraq and...

A group of senators will tomorrow file an emergency motion asking for a Senate resolution that calls on the government to pull Thai troops out of Iraq, a senator said yesterday. Buri Ram Senator Karun Sai-ngam said that his group would file the motion calling for the withdrawal of hundreds of Thai troops, who have been stationed in Iraq on humanitarian and reconstruction missions. Karun said the situation in Iraq had become more volatile, with the enemy adopting unconventional tactics like kidnapping, suicide bombing and guerrilla warfare. The situation has put the lives of Thai troops there at risk, the...

Portugal may withdraw its national guard contingent from Iraq if the security situation in the country continues to deteriorate, Interior Minister Antonio Figueiredo Lopes said. "If the conflict were to deteriorate and the GNR (national guard) did not have what it required to carry out its mission, the only solution would be to withdraw," he told Antena 1 public radio. Portugal's centre-right Prime Minister Jose Manuel Durao Barroso in November dispatched 128 national guards to southern Iraq to back the US-led coalition in the war-torn country, where they operate under British command. Figueiredo Lopes had said on Wednesday that Lisbon...

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Tony Blair (news - web sites) said on Thursday ahead of talks with President Bush (news - web sites) that London and Washington shared the same goals for Iraq (news - web sites) and vowed to stay the course in the troubled country. Blair also dismissed the significance of a message believed to be from al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden (news - web sites) offering European states a truce in return for withdrawal from Iraq. "You know, I don't think we need Osama bin Laden to start telling us how to handle...