Iraq declined Jordan's offer to send troops to help stabilize the country on Saturday, but said it would welcome peacekeeping forces from Arab countries that do not share its borders. "We welcome the support of Arab and Islamic countries...but there are many ways for these counties to stand with the Iraqi people and offer a helping hand," Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari told a news conference. "There are sensitivities over the participation of neighboring countries in peacekeeping forces, but these countries can back United Nations activities." The interim government and its predecessor, the Governing Council, have consistently refused to allow any troops from neighboring countries to enter Iraqi territory. But Zebari welcomed an offer by Yemen, which does not share a border with Iraq, to send peacekeeping troops provided they were under United Nations or Arab League command. "With regard to Yemen's proposal, we are in principle for the participation of Arab peacekeeping troops from beyond the immediate neighbors," Zebari said.
| Maybe they can guard the new UN compound. |
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