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No intention to establish permanent bases in Iraq- NATO deputy commander
(VOI) - Deputy commander of NATO Training Mission in Iraq, Major General Alessandro Pompegnani, on Saturday ruled out any intention for NATO to establish permanent bases in Iraq, stressing our role is to train and upgrade the capabilities of the Iraqi forces. The mission has overseen the training of 67 officers from the War (Arkan) Academy, 10 from the Civil Defense, and 100 trainees on the English language, Pompegnani told a joint news conference held in Baghdad with Major General Hussein Jassim Dohi, deputy to the Iraqi army chief of staff. The NATO Training Mission began working in Iraq on 14 August, 2004, at request of the then Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, and were scheduled to continue training Iraqi forces from both army and police until the end of 2009. Posted by: Fred 2008-06-01 |
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