TOKYO, July 22 (RIA Novosti, Andrei Fesyun) - Ukraine will withdraw its troops from Iraq by the end of 2005, Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko said Friday while on a state visit to Japan. "Now our military policy can be transformed into a policy of economic rebuilding and political and social revitalization of the country," Yushchenko told journalists in Tokyo. The president said the Ukrainian military presence in Iraq was due to Ukrainian strategic interests in the region.
He also noted the positive changes in Iraq, including the formation of a new legitimate government, national army, and police.
Yushchenko said no incidents had occurred in the past 8-9 months involving the Ukrainian military in Iraq.
Ukrainian military units administered medical aid to several thousand Iraqis, helping rebuild over 50 industrial facilities and restore water and energy supplies.
Ukraine has offered the Iraqi government to conduct training programs for the Iraqi army and police either in Iraq or Ukraine, Yushchenko said.
