Da The Washington Post del 20/01/2006
Originale su http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/19/AR2006...

Italy Gives Details of Pullout From Iraq

di Daniel Williams

ROME, Jan. 19 -- The Italian government, facing an uphill electoral campaign, on Thursday detailed plans to end its unpopular involvement in Iraq by withdrawing about half of its forces by June and the rest by year's end.

Defense Minister Antonio Martino told a parliamentary committee that Italy's military involvement in Iraq, which consists of 2,600 soldiers in the southern town of Nasiriyah, would be "considered concluded at the end of the year, having definitively completed its mission." The force is the fourth-largest foreign contingent in Iraq after those of the United States, Britain and South Korea.

Three hundred troops will leave by the end of January and another 1,000 by June, Martino said.

This is the most detailed timetable given by Italy. Last year Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said he would begin withdrawal by September 2005, but he later backed off.

Along with a stagnant economy, support for the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq has contributed to Berlusconi's sinking popularity. Parliamentary elections are scheduled for April 9. Recent polls show an opposition coalition, which has long pressed for an exit schedule in Iraq, leading by about six percentage points. Surveys have consistently indicated a majority of Italians oppose having troops in Iraq.

Although Martino gave specific dates for the drawdown, he said it would not follow an "abrupt calendar" but a "combined dynamic" of NATO, U.N. and Iraqi government plans.

White House press secretary Scott McClellan said Thursday that Italy was "doing this all in close consultation with coalition members, and Italy had previously committed to drawing down troops. Some of this is reflective of the progress we are making on the ground."

Martino said that a civilian reconstruction force would replace the soldiers, although some form of security force would be needed to guard the Italians.

Berlusconi has repeatedly characterized the Italian military contingent as dedicated to building schools and safeguarding archaeological sites. Nonetheless, in November 2003 a suicide bomber blew up a cement truck at the gate of the Nasiriyah base and killed 19 Italians.

Last March, U.S. soldiers mistakenly fired on a car carrying a freed Italian hostage and killed Nicola Calipari, an Italian military intelligence officer. The Pentagon refused to acknowledge any errors in the killing, creating a breach with the Berlusconi government.

There has been a gradual reduction in the number of non-U.S. troops in Iraq. Britain's contingent has shrunk from more than 30,000 to 8,500 since 2003. Spain pulled out after the Madrid bombings of March 2004. Ukraine and Bulgaria left last December. Other countries, notably South Korea and Poland, have extended their troop presence for this year but are shrinking the size of their units.

Most non-U.S. troops have been based in the south, dominated by Shiite Muslims who have been relatively tolerant of the presence of foreign forces.

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