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Mon October 6, 2003 03:55 PM ET By Steve Holland and Mona Megalli WASHINGTON/BAGHDAD (Reuters) - President Bush said on Monday he had ordered a major reorganization of U.S. efforts to bring stability to post-war Iraq, and the Turkish Cabinet sought parliamentary approval to send peacekeepers to help restore security to the country. Bush, under increasing pressure to bring stability and security to Iraq, named national security adviser Condoleezza Rice to head an "Iraq Stabilization Group" charged with coordinating U.S. efforts on counterterrorism, economic issues, political institutions and communications. The reorganization gave Rice a more direct role over the situation...

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) Turkey's Cabinet agrees to deploy troops to help stabilize Iraq, seeks authorization from Parliament.

Captain Byambaa Chinzorig is, perhaps not surprisingly, a little touchy about 1258 and all that. When Mongolian forces last came to Iraq, led by the great warrior Prince Hulagu, grandson of Genghis Khan, they sacked Baghdad, killed an estimated 800,000 people, brought to a bloody end the Abbasid caliphate and destroyed a vast array of ornate public buildings and a sophisticated irrigation system. Today, 745 years later, their plans are much more modest. "We all know the history of the 13th century when the Mongolian soldiers captured Iraq but this time is completely different," said Capt Chinzorig, 30, a proud...

SEOUL, South Korea — Washington's request that South Korea dispatch thousands of infantry troops to Iraq has sparked a new round of anti-American protests in Seoul. The controversy erupted after Seoul officials acknowledged that the United States has requested the deployment of a "light infantry division" consisting of between 2,000 and 10,000 combat soldiers to Iraq. Hundreds of anti-U.S. activists staged a rally in central Seoul Tuesday to oppose any further role for South Korean troops in Iraq. In May, South Korea dispatched about 675 army engineers and medics to assist the U.S.-led rehabilitation of post-war Iraq. Sending troops to...

US Asks S. Korea for Thousands of Soldiers By Seo Soo-min Staff Reporter The United States has asked South Korea for a light infantry division consisting of at least some 2,000-3,000 soldiers to keep the peace in Iraq, citing the Polish Division in Iraq as an example, a senior government official said yesterday. ``The United States has asked for a division of light infantry soldiers capable of operating on a self-sustainable basis,’’ the official said. He added there was no mention of the exact size, although the Polish Division was mentioned as a likely model. The request was made by...

TOKYO — The United States is demanding Japan send its troops to Iraq early to help rebuild the war-torn country, the Tokyo Shimbun reported Sunday. It said the U.S. is displeased with the uncertain outlook for sending the Self-Defense Forces (SDF) to Iraq as Japan plans to delay the dispatch until next year. Japanese government sources cited by the daily quoted a U.S. Defense Department official as asking Japan, "Why don't you shape up?" The U.S. also wants SDF troops to operate on their own in Iraq without relying on U.S. troops, it said. (Kyodo News)

WASHINGTON - President Bush discussed the latest developments in Iraq in a 20-minute phone conversation on Monday with Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski. White House spokesman Scott McClellan said Bush thank Kwasniewski for Poland's help in sending troops to Iraq. The United States last week handed military control over a large belt of Iraq south of Baghdad to a Polish commander. "The two leaders discussed the developments in Iraq, including the need to help Iraqis bring greater security to their country and to advance the establishment of democratic Iraqi political institutions," McClellan said. The spokesman said the two presidents also discussed...

Tyszkiewicz: Ladies and gentlemen, (inaudible) we are delighted to host our wonderful guest, the U.S. Secretary of Defense Mr. Donald Rumsfeld. Please join me in applauding him. (Applause.) Rumsfeld: Thank you very much. General, I am so pleased to be here. What's happening here is important in so many ways. First of all to the troops here, thank you so much for what you do, for your service. It's important. It's valued. It's valued by the people of the United States. It's valued I know by the people of your respective countries, and it's certainly valued by the Iraqi...

U.S. Forces Hand Over Parts of Central IraqWed September 3, 2003 06:00 AM ET By Nadim Ladki BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A Polish-led force took over a chunk of central Iraq from U.S. Marines on Wednesday as Washington sought to relieve the burden on its troops by widening international participation in Iraq's security. The Marines, in charge of the area for several months, handed over control of a South-Central zone of Iraq to the Polish-led multinational force. "I have absolute faith and confidence in the 21 nations that will assume their responsibilities today," Lieutenant-General Ricardo Sanchez, commander of U.S. troops...

<p>BABYLON, Iraq &#8212; The United States, eager to share security duties in Iraq, handed military control over a large swath of the country to a Polish commander yesterday during a ceremony in the ruins of an amphitheater built by Alexander the Great.</p>

BABYLON, Iraq, Sept 3 (Reuters) - U.S. Marines handed over control of a patch of central Iraq on Wednesday to a Polish-led multinational force in a ceremony in ancient Babylon. The handover is part of efforts by Washington to relieve the burden on its troops occupying Iraq since the war that ousted Saddam Hussein in April. "I have absolute faith and confidence in the 21 nations that will assume their responsibilities today," Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez, commander of U.S. troops in Iraq, told a ceremony in an open air amphitheatre in Babylon. In Warsaw, Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski said...

By ANDREW ENGLAND, Associated Press Writer BABYLON, Iraq - The top U.S. commander in Iraq (news - web sites) on Wednesday symbolically marked the transfer of control over the south-central part of the country to an international force led by Poland, hailing the handover as a sign of the international community's commitment to Iraq. In Baghdad, the interim Governing Council swore in members of the newly appointed 25-member Cabinet that will begin taking over many of the day-to-day duties of governing the country from the U.S.-led Coalition Provisional Authority. While military control was ceremoniously passed to the Poles, the handover...

US cancels handover of Najaf to Polish troops By Daniel Howden in Warsaw 02 September 2003 US forces have cancelled a planned withdrawal from the troubled Iraqi city of Najaf on the eve of its handover to Polish commanders. Defence ministry sources in Warsaw confirmed that the city, 100 miles south of Baghdad, will remain under US command in the aftermath of the car bomb attack on Friday that left more than 100 dead. America's decision not to hand over Najaf to Polish control will widen the split in public opinion about the war in one of America's staunchest European...

Latest News AUG 29, 2003<Begin Rant> We are not alone, after all. As of this week, there were 136,000 U.S. troops and 22,000 troops from 28 countries in Iraq.  That's right.  Twenty-eight.  Not two. Not three.  Not ten.  Dutch and Italian forces are currently assisting at Tallil - where Chromey is stationed - and are taking on more responsibilities.  Why then the talk of needing an Official UN Permission Slip? If I understand the so-called predicament correctly, the US is seeking a UN mandate in order to say it's 'OK' for everyone to actually be there in an attempt...

ANKARA - Richard Myers, Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the United States wanted to work with Turkey in Iraq, but Turkey will make its own decision on sending peacekeepers to Iraq. Myers, as well as the Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, attended a reception late Thursday in Washington, hosted by the Turkish Armed Forces' attache. Turkey is one of the countries that Washington has requested to send troops to Iraq to help stabilization of the war-torn country. Government officials have signaled that a decision was unlikely to come in September and said Parliament could convene in...

As Marines go home, Bulgarians keep city secureSubmitted by: I Marine Expeditionary ForceStory Identification Number: 200382595648Story by Army Spc. Benjamin R. Kibbey KARBALA, Iraq(Aug. 26, 2003) -- After more than five months rebuilding the local infrastructure, the Marines of 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment are preparing to return to home after handing over to the Bulgarian Army Aug. 26. The Bulgarian force is in the city to guarantee a secure environment for the continued work to be done both by coalition members and the various nonprofit organizations operating in the city. The secure situation of the city is among...

Coalition forces (Dutch/Italian) provide airfield security at Tal lil Air Base, IraqStory and photo by Staff Sgt. Ward GrosTroops from the 28 countries that have committed forces to support the International Coalition in Iraq have begun assuming more and more duties. Dutch and Italian forces at Tallil Air Base in southern Iraq who are providing internal airfield security together. The Dutch conduct roving patrols while the Italians man checkpoints and provide a quick reaction force for the airfield. “Although we have different responsibilities, our area of responsibility is the same,” said Italian Master Sgt. Gianni Pitzalis who works force...

VIENNA, Austria - They're talking tough - and standing firm. Nations that have sent forces to help keep the peace in postwar Iraq have no immediate plans to draw down or pull out despite mounting casualties, eroding security and a growing wariness of the potential for a quagmire. From Slovakia to Singapore, coalition governments are steeling their resolve. Others are offering more than troops, such as Hungary, which says it's open to a U.S. proposal to train up to 28,000 Iraqi police cadets at one of its military bases. "To run away from this conflict only means to turn a...

CANBERRA — Australia is resisting U.S. requests for a fresh contribution of troops to Iraq, as the security situation deteriorates, a newspaper reported today. The Australian reported unnamed Australian sources said U.S. officials were raising the issue of a peacekeeping contribution through informal channels but no formal appeal had been made. Australian government officials were not immediately available for comment. The report said the approaches had been made in "recent days" and follow an escalation of violence in Iraq and last week's truck-bombing of UN headquarters in Baghdad, which killed the top United Nations envoy and at least 22 others....

Fri August 22, 2003 07:05 PM ET By Randall Mikkelsen SEATTLE (Reuters) - President Bush said on Friday more foreign troops would join U.S. forces in Iraq and the occupation was becoming a battle against "al Qaeda type fighters." "We do need and welcome more foreign troops into Iraq and there will be more foreign troops in Iraq," Bush told reporters during a visit to Seattle. He faced questions on Iraq for the first time since a truck bomb on Tuesday killed 24 people at U.N. headquarters in Baghdad. Bush gave no signs that he was prepared to cede more...