Anti-war activists held a large street protest in Seoul Saturday, demonstrating against the South Korean government plan to extend its two-year military presence in Iraq.
"The Defense Ministry has already started recruiting troops to go to Iraq, whereas its extension plan has not even been approved yet," said the Korean People's Action against Dispatch of Troops to Iraq in a statement.
South Korea sent 3,300 troops to Iraq in 2004, becoming the second-largest U.S.-allied military deployment in the war-devastated country. The number has now been reduced to 2,400.
If the South Korean government wants to keep its "Zaytun" unit in Iraq beyond this year, it needs approval from the National Assembly, where anti-war sentiment is becoming more vocal.
The South Korean government has not officially decided whether to extend its troop deployment in Iraq but critics argue that the Defense Ministry has already started making preparations for it.
Defense Ministry officials were not immediately available for comment.
Around 1,000 protesters, including some war veterans, gathered for the demonstration through downtown Seoul later in the day to press their demand for the withdrawal of all Korean troops from Iraq.
No severe traffic congestion and clashes have been reported.
The protesters opposed any plan by their government to contribute to U.N. peacekeeping forces in Lebanon, because doing so would be tantamount to tacit support for Washington's Middle East policy, the organizers said.
They also opposed the planned relocation of most of the 30,000 U.S. troops in South Korea to an expanded base in Pyeongtaek, 70 kilometers south of Seoul, by 2008.
The plan calls for the U.S. military command in South Korea to leave Seoul and the U.S. 2nd Infantry Division to move away from the border with North Korea. The protestors will also stage a rally on Sunday.
Seoul, Sept. 23 (Yonhap News)
Anti-war protesters demand end to Korean military presence in Iraq |
