Economía y Politica Internacionales

Tokio y Seúl retroceden sobre Irak

Autor: Samuel Len

Fecha: 14/11/2003

Traductor: Celeste Murillo, especial para P.I.

Fuente: International Herald Tribune

Japan puts troop commitment on hold; South Korea cuts deployment to 3,000

SEOUL Japan and South Korea backed away Thursday from committing more troops to support U.S. operations in Iraq.

The decisions came a day after a suicide bombing in the Iraqi town of Nasiriya killed at least 27 people, including 18 Italians. The deaths marked the highest number of fatalities among non-American coalition forces since the start of the U.S.-led occupation in April, and increased uncertainty in both Japan and South Korea.

Japan said the situation was not ripe to send troops to Iraq, while South Korea said it would send no more than 3,000 soldiers, far fewer than what Washington was seeking.

The new hesitancy by Washington's Asian allies came as the coalition and its Iraqi partners engaged in an urgent re-examination of the occupation. $ Iraqi political leaders decided to reject a plan to write a new constitution in the coming months, saying they will propose instead that they immediately assume the powers of a provisional government.

President George W. Bush said Thursday the United States was developing a plan to "encourage more Iraqis to assume more responsibility" quickly in governing the country.

Bush and his aides have made it clear that he wants to dramatically speed the political evolution in Iraq toward self-governance, possibly leading to the creation of a provisional government as early as mid-2004.

As the U.S. policy was being revamped, a top-secret report by the Central Intelligence Agency suggested that the situation in Iraq was approaching a turning point, with Iraqis losing faith in American-led occupation forces and in the U.S.-appointed Iraqi Governing Council.

There were no claims of responsibility for the attack on the Italians in Nasiriya, the latest in a series that have targeted not only Americans but other foreigners and the Iraqis who support them. Earlier targets have included the United Nations, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Jordanian Embassy.

Hours after the blast, U.S. forces launched two strikes in Baghdad against suspected loyalists of Saddam Hussein's government.

The Japanese government had originally hoped to send troops to Iraq by the end of this year to take part in rebuilding operations. Until now, South Korea had been reluctant to comment on how many troops it envisioned sending, gauging the sentiment of both its own public as well as Washington.

Japan's chief cabinet secretary, Yasuo Fukuda, expressed Tokyo's reservations. "We could send the troops if circumstances permit," The Associated Press quoted Fukuda as telling reporters. "But there is no such situation."

Asked if the deployment could be delayed until the new year, Fukuda said, "That possibility has always existed."

A Japanese decision to proceed would have been a show of solidarity as Rumsfeld arrives in Japan on Friday for a three-day visit. He will then go to Seoul.

The South Korean president, Roh Moo Hyun, told his cabinet to send no more than 3,000 soldiers, the presidential Blue House said in a statement.

Seoul recently sent a group of officials to Washington to discuss how many South Korean troops the United States had envisioned. Some reports have said Washington was seeking as many as 10,000.

Under a guideline that the South Korean leader delivered to his security officials, "the dispatch of additional troops will not exceed 3,000," the statement said. Just a month ago, Seoul had agreed with Washington to send troops to support U.S. military operations in Iraq.

And only hours before the attack in Nasiriya, Japan sounded confident that it would send troops. Fukuda said Wednesday that a contingent would be sent before the end of this year.

Those comments were later bolstered by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, who said that intimidation would not deter Japan from its commitment to help rebuild Iraq.

"We cannot be daunted by terrorism," Koizumi was quoted as saying by Agence France-Presse.

The town of Mosul, where South Korean troops are expected to be based, has seen a flare-up of violence in recent weeks, but Seoul's forces already there have not been targeted. Although Seoul sent hundreds of noncombat troops to Iraq this year, the idea of sending more troops has sharply divided Koreans.