August 25, 2003	Monday	Jumadi-us-Sani 26

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ISLAMABAD, Aug 24: The US government has requested Pakistan for 10,000 troops for peacekeeping purposes in the Northern Iraq while Pakistan has indicated its willingness to dispatch the force under the UN cover, Dawn learnt reliably on Sunday.

While the government’s position remains that the matter was still under review, Pakistan has, in principle, decided that it would only send troops to Iraq under the auspices of the UN, sources said.

Recent public pronouncements made by President Gen Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Jamali on this question also point in this direction.

A crucial factor for Pakistan was also the position of the neighbouring states of Iraq. The Arab League’s rejection earlier in August of the US request that they contribute to stabilization force in Iraq has added to the clarity among all sections of Pakistan’s foreign policy-making establishment that troops should be sent only under the UN Umbrella.

If the government decides to send a division to Iraq it would be Pakistan’s biggest-ever contribution to any one single peacekeeping operation outside Pakistan.

A division is a self-sufficient combat unit with all its complements including artillery, Armour, signals, engineers, supply service support and field hospitals.

“Pakistan has never mobilised a division for any peacekeeping operation,” a serving army official confirmed.

A month is the minimum time required for Pakistan to marshal the required number of troops and deploy it in Iraq, a senior military official told Dawn. He pointed out that it would require preparations at both ends, in Iraq and here.

“At present the US army logistics are in place and under the UN cover logistics would have to be worked out by the UN, which in itself would be a time-consuming exercise,” the official said.

While reportedly the US and the UK are trying to evolve a text for a fresh UN resolution on Iraq for additional troops and economic support, there are no clear signals yet on when the resolution will be tabled to seek authorisation from the 15- member UN Security Council. It is likely that the resolution will be tabled after the UK assumes Presidency of the UNSC on Sept 1.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Anan has, however, indicated that there would be no blue helmets in Iraq if the overall control of military operations there remains with the US. He has been saying there is need for a multinational force in Iraq under the UN command.

Officials here continued to maintain that Pakistan was under no pressure from the US government to send troops.