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Spain
Starts Iraq Troops Pullout, Honduras Follows
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"Whoever
said six to eight weeks was being imprudent because it will be
less," Bono
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BAGHDAD,
April 20 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - As Spain confirmed
that the withdrawal of its troops from occupied Iraq has already
started, Honduras announced Tuesday, April 20, pulling out its
368-strong force from the oil-rich Arab country.
Meanwhile,
Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra warned he would bring home a
contingent of about 450 personnel if they were attacked by Iraqi
fighters.
"The
process has started," Spanish Defense Minister Jose Bono was
quoted by Reuters as telling a hastily-arranged news briefing Monday,
April 19, after a meeting of the new cabinet under Premier Jose Luis
Rodriguez Zapatero.
He
indicated that the process "will be completed rapidly" over
a short period of time.
"Whoever
said six to eight weeks was being imprudent because it will be
less," the minister maintained.
He
declined to give specific dates for security reasons and because the
troops had to be told before anyone else.
A
military plane left Monday with equipment to help carry out the
withdrawal, Bono said.
Originally
that flight was to have been for a routine troop rotation, Reuters
said.
Zapatero
announced Sunday, April 18, that he had given orders to the defense
minister to take the necessary measures to guarantee that Spanish
troops "are withdrawn from Iraq as
soon as possible and with maximum security".
The
new premier had vowed following his Socialist Party's election win
last month to bring home all the troops unless they come under
U.N. command by June 30 when their mandate expires.
Romano
Prodi, European Commission president, praised Spain's decision, saying
it will help heal the European rift created by the U.S.-led war on
Iraq.
In
a veiled rebuke, U.S. President George Bush stressed to Zapatero over
the phone "the importance of carefully considering future actions
to avoid giving false comfort to terrorists or enemies of freedom in
Iraq".
His
National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice expressed fear the Spanish
move would make other "coalition" nations with forces in
Iraq reconsider
their positions.
Spain
is commanding troops in Iraq from other Spanish-speaking nations in
the U.S.-led occupation -- Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua and the
Dominican Republic.
Honduras
Follows Suit
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Honduras
will complete troops withdrawal "in the shortest possible
time," said Maduro
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Rice’s
fears proved grounded after President Ricardo Maduro of Honduras
announced that his 368-strong force in Iraq would be pulled out.
He
said in a television and radio address the withdrawal would be carried
out "in the shortest possible time and under safe conditions for
our troops," according to Reuters.
Thai
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said Tuesday, April 20, he would
consider bringing home a contingent of about 450 personnel if they
were targeted by the relentless Iraqi resistance, reported Agence
France-Presse (AFP).
"The
safety of Thai troops in Iraq is my first priority, followed by their
humanitarian mission," he said.
"We
went there to help them [Iraqis], but if we get killed why do we have
to stay."
"If
we are able to administer medicine or help in rebuilding we will
maintain our presence, but we will return if we cannot carry out our
duty," stressed the prime minister.
Nicaraguan
troops returned home earlier this year as part of a normal rotation
but a new contingent has not been sent to the occupied country.
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