India has decided not to send troops to help US-led forces in Iraq, External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha announced on Monday.
The decision was taken during a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security, chaired by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee at his residence in New Delhi.
Sinha told reporters that India would consider sending troops only if it was under a United Nations mandate. He however, added that India would be taking part in the rehabilitation process in the war-stricken country, according to The Times of India.
Mounting political opposition at home, the complex ground realities prevailing in Iraq and Washington's failure to introduce a credible political face to the interim administration were all taken into consideration at the crucial meeting, the report added.
The Indian decision is likely to displease the US administration, which has dispatched several envoys to convey that Washington would be "extremely grateful" if India would agree to send soldiers to Iraq. "America wants Indian troops as they are highly professional and experienced," US Ambassador Robert Blackwill was quoted as saying before the cabinet decision. (Albawaba.com)
© 2003 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
