Poland to Cut Its Troops in Iraq in Mid-February

Poland will cut its troop strength in Iraq by nearly a third in February as part of a long-standing plan to reduce its presence there, the government said Tuesday.

Poland’s 2,400-member contingent will be cut to 1,700 in mid-February, with 700 soldiers remaining on standby in Poland, Defense Minister Jerzy Szmajdzinski said at a news conference.

Poland, a staunch U.S. ally on the Iraq issue, commands an international force of about 6,000 troops in south-central Iraq.

The cuts will come as part of a regular troop rotation due to begin in early January, but Szmajdzinski emphasized that its force will remain stable for Iraq’s Jan. 30 vote.

“During the electoral campaign and during the elections, there will be 2,400 troops,” he said.

Szmajdzinski cited the military operation’s high cost and waning violence in the Polish sector as reasons for the reduction.

The area, which includes the cities of Hillah and Diwaniya, has “one of the highest security levels in Iraq, and there aren’t such high military needs,” he said.

The cuts will chiefly affect logistics and services and won’t lead to a drop in the number of soldiers patrolling the streets or require other countries to send reinforcements, Szmajdzinski said.

Polish leaders have said since summer that they plan to scale back the number of troops in Iraq in 2005.

Although surveys show that three of four Poles oppose having troops in Iraq, Warsaw’s leaders have repeatedly said they oppose a complete pullout until the security situation has stabilized.

Reducing the number of troops will cut the mission’s cost next year to $69 million, saving the deficit-ridden Polish government about $10 million, Szmajdzinski said.

The Polish-led force, which has no mandate for combat operations, currently has soldiers from 15 countries. It peaked at 9,500 before several nations pulled out.

The largest withdrawal was by Spain, which called home its 1,300 soldiers after Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero was elected prime minister in March. Hungary decided last month to pull out its 300 troops by March.