Australia denies plans to send more troops to Iraq
Australia’s defence minister today denied reports that the country would send more troops to Iraq to replace outgoing British forces, saying Australia would not take up the slack if other countries began pulling forces out of the war-ravaged country.
“Will we send further people to replace any others that are leaving? No, we have no intention of doing that,” Defence Minister Robert Hill told reporters. “We would like to see our troops home as soon as the job is done.”
Recent media reports have suggested that Australia would increase its troop deployment to replace British forces in southern Iraq, speculating that Britain would begin to withdraw its troops in the next year as it shifts its focus to Afghanistan.
Earlier this year, Australia sent an additional 450 troops to southern Iraq to help train local security forces and protect Japanese military engineers working on reconstruction efforts.
“When we complete our training of the Iraqi security forces in southern Iraq, we trust that they will be able to take over the security function and we will no longer be necessary,” Hill said.
Australia maintains around 1,400 troops in the Middle East, including around 750 in Iraq.
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