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Italy to complete troops withdrawal from Iraq this year
(People's Daily)
Updated: 2006-03-01 09:30 Visiting Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi
said here on Tuesday that Italy will complete its troops withdrawal from Iraq by
the end of the year.
Speaking to reporters after talks with U.S. President George W. Bush at the
White House, Berlusconi said that he would stand by plans to withdraw all of
Italy's 3,000 troops from Iraq by the end of the year.
"This plan has been agreed upon by our allies and the Iraqi government," said
Berlusconi, one of the strongest U.S. allies on Iraq but facing a tough
re-election campaign at home.
Italy's troops have helped training 10,000 Iraqi security officers,
Berlusconi added.
Berlusconi, one of staunch U.S. allies on Iraq, is reportedly seeking U.S.
support for his re-election at home more than improving bilateral ties.
The U.S.-Italy relations were strained after Italian agent Nicola Calipari
was shot dead near the Baghdad airport by the US military in March 2005.
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