S.Korean Non-combat Troops to Be Sent to Gulf Ahead of Schedule

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Sunday, April 13, 2003

S.Korean Non-combat Troops to Be Sent to Gulf Ahead of Schedule

Twenty South Korean engineering andmedical advance troops will be sent to Kuwait on April 17, according to the country's Foreign and Trade Ministry on Saturday.

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Twenty South Korean engineering andmedical advance troops will be sent to Kuwait on April 17, according to the country's Foreign and Trade Ministry on Saturday.

Then the first batch of 300 military non-combat troops will be dispatched on April 30 to Kuwait where the US ground forces are headquartered. The remaining more than 300 engineering troops willbe sent to the Gulf country on May 14, said a statement of the ministry.

It explained that the troop dispatch date was moved up to show Seoul's willingness to respond positively to a US demand for the dispatch of troops.

The two sides are discussing the mission of the South Korean troops, which may be sent to Southern Iraq, the statement said.

Soon after the United States and other pro-war coalition members launched the war against Iraq on March 20, the South Korean government voiced its support for the operation and decidedto send non-combat troops to the war-affected area.

The National Assembly approved the government's troop dispatch bill on April 2 after deferment of the ballot on the motion for two times due to the growing anti-war mood among local residents.

The Ministry of National Defense of South Korea then decided tosend 673 non-combat troops, including 100-member medical unit and 573 engineering personnel, to attend the US-led Iraq war.

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