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Iraqi FM asks for longer stay of Japanese troops
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2005-11-24 16:38
Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari on Thursday said Iraq wants the
Japanese government to extend the humanitarian assistance mission in Iraq after
the current operation expires next month.
Zebari told his Japanese counterpart Taro Aso during a working luncheon in
Tokyo that Iraq needs the Self-Defense Forces troops to stay there since now is
a crucial time for his country as it is undergoing a security transition, Kyodo
News reported, citing a Japanese official.
The 600-strong Japanese ground troops are supposed to start withdrawing on
December 14, one day before the elections for the national assembly in Iraq.
Aso said Japan will "decide soon" on the SDF deployment, taking into account
its "role and responsibility in the international community and the situation of
the reconstruction aid."
Zebari arrived in Japan on Wednesday on a four-day visit.
Before the luncheon, the foreign ministers signed a document which exempts
Iraq from paying back 80 percent of the 7.6 billion US dollars debts it owes to
Japan.
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