The lower chamber of the Czech parliament voted Wednesday to approve a government plan to withdraw 80 of its 100 troops from Iraq in the second half of next year. Of the 195 lawmakers present in the 200-seat chamber, 129 deputies were in favor of the plan while 45 were against it, with 21 deputies abstaining. The Czech troops are deployed in southern Iraq as guards at a British base. The government, which approved the move Oct. 22, said it would consult its allies in Iraq about it. Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg said Wednesday the remaining 20 troops will focus on the training of Iraqi officers at the request of Iraq's government. The 20 have a mandate until the end of next year. «Our mission in Iraq is coming to an end,» Schwarzenberg said. In separate votes Wednesday, the chamber also agreed to increase the Czech contribution to the NATO-led mission in Afghanistan and to maintain the country's force in the Balkans. The Czech Republic has about 225 soldiers in Afghanistan as part of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force, and the number could reach 415 next year, according to the plan. The Czech Republic will also continue to participate in the NATO-led peacekeeping force in Kosovo, with up to 550 soldiers in the mission known as KFOR, the chamber agreed. Five servicemen will be deployed in the European Union mission in Bosnia in the first half of 2008. The government plan still needs approval by the upper chamber, the Senate, the Associated Press reported.
