Bulgaria has withdrawn its entire 334-strong light infantry battalion from Iraq, in line with plans to end its military presence there by the end of the year, the defence ministry said on Tuesday.
The Bulgarian parliament approved the move in May in response to strong public opposition to the war. The withdrawal also coincides with a similar pullout by Ukraine, one of the largest contributors to the U.S.-led operation in Iraq."As of last night, the last group of 130 Bulgarian soldiers is in a safe place in Kuwait. They will come home on December 30," Defence Ministry spokesman Vladislav Prelezov said.
A staunch supporter of the U.S.-led military operations, Bulgaria sent troops to Iraq in 2003. But it has since lost 13 soldiers and six civilians there and the majority of its 7.8 million people oppose keeping soldiers there any longer.The ruling Socialists had promised to withdraw the troops immediately after winning June elections.
But they later changed plans and decided to stick to the year-end target after Iraq's interim government asked for the Balkan country's support for December 15 parliamentary polls.
Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev has said the NATO newcomer will discuss in January ways to continue its contribution to Iraq's stability, including possibly sending around 120 troops to guard a camp for Iranian refugees in Ashraf, 70 km (40 miles) north of Baghdad.
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