ID :
157356
Sat, 01/15/2011 - 13:53
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/157356
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Germany reiterates no plans yet to join Afghan Awacs mission
Berlin, Jan 15, IRNA -- The German government reaffirmed here on Friday that there are no plans so far to send German soldiers to join NATO's Awacs surveillance mission over Afghanistan.
Talking to the press in Berlin, chancellery spokesman Steffen Seibert
made clear that German participation in manning the flying radar stations was not on the agenda at the present time.
A German foreign ministry spokesperson highlighted Seibert's remarks by saying this issue was not included in the government motion on extending the Afghan mandate when the German parliament votes on a new military mandate on January 28.
Germany's deployment in Afghanistan is already very unpopular with public opinion, and a decision to send any new detachment could have been blocked in parliament as a result of a conflict over its mandate and funding.
NATO plans to deploy a number of Germany-based AWACS planes for the military operation in Afghanistan.
The United States flies presently AWACS surveillance missions over the war-stricken country using its own planes.
Nearly two-thirds of Germans (63 percent) support reportedly a fixed date for a pullout of their troops from Afghanistan.
Only 32 percent of those questioned say German soldiers should stay in Afghanistan as long as they are needed to stabilize the security situation in that war-stricken country.
Among those backing a fixed withdrawal date, some 59 percent say the
Afghan pullout should be completed by the end of this year and 28 percent say by the end of next year.
Berlin hopes to begin the pullout by the end of this year and conclude the withdrawal by 2014, depending on the Afghan security situation.
Germany has based around 4,600 troops in Afghanistan as part of the
controversial NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)./end
Talking to the press in Berlin, chancellery spokesman Steffen Seibert
made clear that German participation in manning the flying radar stations was not on the agenda at the present time.
A German foreign ministry spokesperson highlighted Seibert's remarks by saying this issue was not included in the government motion on extending the Afghan mandate when the German parliament votes on a new military mandate on January 28.
Germany's deployment in Afghanistan is already very unpopular with public opinion, and a decision to send any new detachment could have been blocked in parliament as a result of a conflict over its mandate and funding.
NATO plans to deploy a number of Germany-based AWACS planes for the military operation in Afghanistan.
The United States flies presently AWACS surveillance missions over the war-stricken country using its own planes.
Nearly two-thirds of Germans (63 percent) support reportedly a fixed date for a pullout of their troops from Afghanistan.
Only 32 percent of those questioned say German soldiers should stay in Afghanistan as long as they are needed to stabilize the security situation in that war-stricken country.
Among those backing a fixed withdrawal date, some 59 percent say the
Afghan pullout should be completed by the end of this year and 28 percent say by the end of next year.
Berlin hopes to begin the pullout by the end of this year and conclude the withdrawal by 2014, depending on the Afghan security situation.
Germany has based around 4,600 troops in Afghanistan as part of the
controversial NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)./end
