3 September 2007
British forces will continue to serve the Iraqi people following their withdrawal from the city of Basra, the PM has said.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, the Prime Minister said that UK troops will continue to "discharge our duties to the Iraqi people and the international community" as the transfer of personnel from the base at Basra Palace goes ahead. A total of 550 UK soldiers are handing the palace over to Iraqi control and joining the remaining 5,000 troops at the last British base near Basra Airport.
Mr Brown said that the "pre-planned and organised" withdrawal meant that UK forces would assume an "overwatch" role but could "re-intervene" if necessary. He added that any change in the overall number of British troops in Iraq would "depend on the assessment of commanders on the ground over the coming weeks and months".
An MoD statement said:
"Handing over Basra Palace to the Iraqi authorities has long been our intention, as we have stated publicly on numerous occasions. We expect the handover to occur in the next few days.
"The Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) want to take full responsibility for their own security and the handover is a step towards that goal."
The MoD said UK forces would now operate from their base at Basra Air Station and "retain security responsibility" for Basra until the full handover expected in the autumn. The training of Iraqi troops will continue up to the handover period, the statement said.
- Listen to the interview on the BBC Radio 4 website (new window)
- Read the MoD statement in full (new window)
- Go to our International section
Image copyright: Reuters
delicious
digg
facebook
