Italy will reduce by half its troop force in Iraq by May as part of its phased withdrawal from the country, Defence Minister Antonio Martino was quoted as saying today.
"As security conditions improve, our military commitment is reduced. We had 3,200 troops in August last year, 2,900 in September and in January they are 2,600," Martino was quoted as saying by women's magazine Diva e Donna in an interview.
"We will continue like this throughout 2006 and I expect that in May the contingent will be halved," he said.
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has said that all the troops will be withdrawn from Iraq by the end of 2006 in coordination with the Iraqi government.
Martino is due to present the phased withdrawal plan to parliament tomorrow.
Italy, which has the fourth-largest foreign contingent in Iraq, faces a general election next April in which the unpopular Iraq war is likely to be an issue. Most Italians and all opposition parties opposed the deployment.
