Ironworks Gaming Forum - View Single Post - Spain PM-elect: Troops out of Iraq

Skunk · 03-16-2004, 06:09 AM

Zapatero didn't say that he would remove the troops regardless - he said that he would remove them if they were not wearing UN helmets by June 30th and the new government had not formally requested UN troop presence. This leaves lots of room for the US/UK to play with and is not too distant from what both Blair and Bush have stated as their aims.

So in reality, all Zapatero has done is to pressure Bush/Blair to live up to their promises - and if the latter two have been honest, there will still be Spanish troops in Iraq after June 30th.

In any event, the Spanish troops number only about 1300 - an insignificant amount. Their presence was more about giving political support to the UK/US than to add any real stability to Iraq.

03-16-2004, 06:09 AM	#7
Skunk Banned User Join Date: September 3, 2001 Location: Amsterdam, The Netherlands Age: 63 Posts: 1,463	Zapatero didn't say that he would remove the troops regardless - he said that he would remove them if they were not wearing UN helmets by June 30th and the new government had not formally requested UN troop presence. This leaves lots of room for the US/UK to play with and is not too distant from what both Blair and Bush have stated as their aims. So in reality, all Zapatero has done is to pressure Bush/Blair to live up to their promises - and if the latter two have been honest, there will still be Spanish troops in Iraq after June 30th. In any event, the Spanish troops number only about 1300 - an insignificant amount. Their presence was more about giving political support to the UK/US than to add any real stability to Iraq.