South Korea is going to try sending troops to Afghanistan again

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http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jcdQcXZ2MVE49zjM4aawZxC99hPwD9BLAB500

SKorea planning troop deployment to Afghanistan

By JAE-SOON CHANG (AP) – 27 minutes ago

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea announced plans Friday to send troops to Afghanistan to protect its civilian aid workers, two years after withdrawing its forces following a fatal hostage crisis.

The South Korean government intends to expand a reconstruction team now helping to rebuild Afghanistan and will dispatch police and troops to protect them, Foreign Ministry spokesman Moon Tae-young said.

The decision to dispatch troops is subject to approval in parliament, where the ruling Grand National Party has enough seats to guarantee passage.

The announcement comes about two years after South Korea withdrew some 200 army medics and engineers from Afghanistan. The pullout, though previously planned, followed a hostage standoff in which the Taliban killed two South Koreans after demanding that Seoul immediately withdraw its troops.

Moon stressed that the troops would not take part in combat operations.




http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/08/29/2018082.htm?section=justin

S Korea to withdraw troops, missionaries from Afghanistan

Posted Wed Aug 29, 2007 7:25am AEST

South Korea has agreed to pull its troups out of Afghanistan and halt its missionary activities in the country as part of a deal to secure the release of 19 Christian missionaries who were kidnapped by the Taliban last month.

The hostages are set to be released after agreement was reached between Taliban leaders and South Korean negotiators.

South Korea has agreed to end Christian missionary activities inside Afghanistan and withdraw its troops from the country by the end of this year.

South Korea says it had already planned to do that.