South Korea has decided to send about 400 troops, mainly special forces, to Lebanon to take part in a multinational peacekeeping operation there, defense sources said Thursday.
The Defense Ministry plans to submit a bill for the troop dispatch to the National Assembly early next month after securing approval from a Cabinet meeting, they said.
"The battalion-size contingent, consisting of 270 special forces as well as 130 medics, transportation and administrative soldiers, will be contributed to the U.N. peacekeeping forces in Lebanon," a defense source said, asking to remain anonymous.
The exact timetable and location for the deployment will be decided after consultation with the U.N., which will bear all the costs necessary for dispatching and maintaining the troops in Lebanon, he explained.
In October, South Korea finished a field survey of Lebanon before deciding whether to contribute troops to U.N. peacekeeping forces there.
But analysts say that it remains to be seen whether it will be possible to gain parliamentary approval for sending the troops to Lebanon at a time when calls are mounting for the withdrawal of the South Korean troops stationed in Iraq.
Led by progressive lawmakers, the ruling Uri Party voted earlier Thursday to adopt the party line of presenting a pullout timeline to the National Assembly.
The Zaytun unit, whose name means "olive" in Arabic, has been deployed to help reconstruction efforts in the northern Iraqi city of Irbil. South Korea initially deployed some 3,300 troops in Irbil at the request of the U.S. government, which is spearheading a war against terrorists.
But the fate of the now 2,400-strong Zaytun unit depends on public opinion in South Korea because its deployment mandate is set to expire at the end of December. The country is sharply divided over whether or not to keep its contingent there beyond this deadline.
Seoul, Nov. 23 (Yonhap News)
S. Korea to send 400 troops to Lebanon for U.N. peacekeeping |
