ISTANBUL, June 16: The north African states of Tunisia and Morocco along with Pakistan have offered to send troops to protect the United Nations should it return to Iraq, an Arab minister told AFP on Tuesday.

"The interim Iraqi government has made it known that it is not opposed to Arab troops joining the force charged with protecting UN staff and buildings, as long as they are not from neighbouring countries," the minister told AFP on the sidelines of the Organization of the Islamic Conference in Istanbul.

"Two Arab countries, Tunisia and Morocco, have said they are ready to send troops as well as a major OIC member, Pakistan," the minister said on condition of anonymity.

However he stressed: "These forces will not be in charge of security in Iraq as their mission is solely focused on the protection of UN personnel." UN secretary-general Kofi Annan has said the international body's return to Iraq would depend on the security situation there, where the US-led occupation is due to return limited power to an Iraqi government on June 30. -AFP