Thai PM hints of Iraqi withdrawal

Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has hinted that Thai special task force might be withdrawn from Iraq if the security situation deteriorated there.

He was quoted Saturday by the Thai News Agency as saying that "For as long as we are able to continue providing humanitarian assistance, we will remain. But if we are no longer able to stay, we will return. As far as Thailand is concerned, we are not yet saying that we will withdraw, or that we won't withdraw."

The prime minister, who observed that the troops' humanitarian mission would be impossible to carry out if their personal safety was compromised, said that he had ordered the troops to refrain from operating outside the areas under their remit.

He said he would review the situation on a day-by-day basis, adding the taking of Japanese hostages by Iraqi forces was an ominous signal for the safety of foreign troops on Iraqi soil.

Source: Xinhua