Thursday, July 17, 2003
Thailand prepares to send military personnel to Iraq
Agence France-Presse Bangkok, July 17
Thailand is preparing to send military personnel to Iraq to assist US-led coalition forces in their rehabilitation efforts, the defence ministry said on Thursday.
Defence ministry spokesman Palangkoon Klaharn said that the Supreme Command Headquarters, the military's peak body, was finalising plans to send a medical team and engineers to the war-torn country.
"We have a duty to help rehabilitate countries who need assistance," he said. "We are helping with humanitarian assistance."
Palangkoon was not able to say how many personnel would be sent. News reports said that the plan would be set for approval by top brass next week, while three colonels, one each from the army, navy and air force, had already been dispatched to pave the way for the mission.
However, Thai senators have objected to the proposal, saying it was too dangerous to have Thai soldiers assisting US troops. "It's still too risky out there. Thai troops could become targets of violent attacks for siding with the occupying forces," Senator Wittaya Masena told the Bangkok Post on Thursday.
The Thai government stayed neutral during the war that toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein.
Palangkoon said that Thailand had gained crucial experience in taking part in reconstruction missions through its work in East Timor.
Thailand was a major player in the rehabilitation of the tiny nation, with two successive Thai generals leading the UN Transitional Administration which was established to run the territory after Indonesia's withdrawal.
© Hindustan Times Ltd. 2003. Reproduction in any form is prohibited without prior permission