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Posted on 04/21/2006 12:54:49 PM PDT by lizol
Polish forces 'may stay in Iraq'
Poland may not pull its troops out of Iraq at the end of the year as planned, its defence minister has said. Radek Sikorski told the BBC that while he thought it was unlikely Polish forces would stay on, that could change depending on circumstances.
Poland has about 1,500 troops currently serving in Iraq.
The previous government had said it would withdraw them at the start of the year, but the present administration reversed this when it took power.
In an interview with Europe Today, Mr Sikorski said Polish forces had encountered less trouble in Iraq that some other countries' troops.
He attributed this to a greater reluctance to use force and more respect for the country's religious sites.
"We are a religious country. Maybe the Iraqis pick up the fact that we respect their religious sites perhaps more than some others, and we seem to have good relationships with the local people," he said.
Poland is a staunch ally of the US, and is the fifth biggest foreign contingent in Iraq, after the US, Britain, South Korea and Italy.
Polish troops command a multi-national force in south-central Iraq.
The previous government had said it would withdraw them at the start of the year, but the present administration reversed this when it took power.
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Good! God bless Poland!
E-mail them, thank them for their support and encourage them to stay the course!
mailto:polemb.info@earthlink.net
their GROM (special forces) are STUDS!
Wow. glad I got broadband. Great pics! Go Poland!
I want to see more Polish general goods in American stores. I like to encourage our allies via buying merchandise from entrepreneurs in countries such as Poland.
Unfortunately - after the last election probably the same is going to happen to Italy.
"I wonder how that makes our good allies, Spain and France, feel?"
They probably don't give a damn.
By general goods I mean American businesses and citizens who might want to buy or indirectly benefit from such items as Polish tool and die machinery, agricultural goods, aviation equipment, construction machinery, computers, pharmaceuticals, processed steel, investment services and other exportable goods.
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