Bulgaria to withdraw troops from Iraq in 2005

Bulgaria will pull all its 450 soldiers out of the turbulent Iraq next year, Foreign Minister Solomon Passy said Saturday.

Bulgarian troops will not stay in Iraq beyond 2005 and the Bulgarian government will work out a specific withdrawal timetable according to the Iraqi interim government's demand, Bulgarian telegraph agency quoted Passy as reporting.

Some Bulgarian soldiers in Iraq were attacked by suicide car bombings on Dec. 27, in which five were killed and 26 wounded. Later conflicts have left one soldier dead and four injured.

Many soldiers have applied for returning Bulgaria, and 42 of the second contingent deployed in Iraq have been sent home for turning down assignments.

Up to 15 soldiers of the third contingent, who will be dispatched to Iraq soon, have handed in applications for not going to the Arab country.

Source: Xinhua