July 15, 2003	Tuesday	Jumadi-ul-Awwal 14, 1424

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NEW DELHI, July 14: India on Monday ruled out sending troops to Iraq without a UN mandate thus turning down a request by the US to join the American-led military administration there.

Foreign Minister Yashwant Sinha announced the decision following a meeting of the apex cabinet committee on security (CSS) which took the view that New Delhi could consider involving itself militarily in Baghdad only under a UN cover.

The United States responded by saying India’s decision would not hinder its growing startegic ties with New Delhi.

“As we have said before, this was a decision for the Government of India to take. Opposition has been clear on this while we had hoped India would take a different decision,” a US embassy spokesperson said after Mr Sinha’s statement.

“The transformation of US-India relations will continue as before. India remains an important strategic partner for the US,” the spokesperson said.

Mr Sinha, meeting reporters after a 90-minute meeting of the CCS chaired by Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, said:”If there was an explicit UN mandate for the purpose, the government of India could consider the deployment of our troops in Iraq.”

While almost the entire opposition had rejected the idea of troops operating under US command, it was Defence Minister George Fernandes’ Samata Party that spoke out loudest against involvement in Iraq.

Mr Vajpayee’s Bharatiya Janata Party was also not keen on deployment of Indian troops in Iraq although it was evidently less vocal in expressing the view.

With the monsoon session of parliament due to start later this month and key state polls looming, the government’s decision was taken also with an eye on the popular will. New Delhi’s decision was conveyed to US ambassador Robert Blackwill by National Security Adviser Brajesh Mishra, who was also present at the CCS meeting.