NATO must commit to future Iraq role: de Hoop Scheffer

[Barrett808]

MUNICH, Germany (AFP) - NATO has a duty to help provide security in Iraq and must play a fuller role there if a new and independent government calls on it to do so, the alliance's chief Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said.

"If a legitimate Iraqi government asks for our assistance, and if we have the support of the United Nations, NATO should not abdicate from its responsibilities," he told an international security conference in Munich, southern Germany.

NATO currently provides support to member state Poland in its control of a sector in the war-torn country, but the United States wants the alliance to play a wider role.

The push for a larger NATO role comes amid mounting pressure on the US military as it struggles to pacify Iraq while preparing to hand over sovereignty to an as yet undefined transitional government.

Other countries, notably Germany, have voiced scepticism about the idea and are reluctant to make any commitment until elections have been held.

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