Germany dismisses idea of joint peacekeeping duties in Iraq

Germany yesterday rejected a proposal by Warsaw for German troops to team up with Polish and Danish soldiers to keep the peace in part of postwar Iraq. Poland stunned Germany on Tuesday when Defense Minister Jerzy Szmajdziński, proposed in Washington that a Polish-led stabilization force in Iraq could be based on an existing joint Polish-German-Danish corps. "The participation of German soldiers in such a common mission is not planned and so will not take place and Germany's policies remain consistent," Bela Anda, chief German government spokesman, told a news conference. A German Defense Ministry spokesman said the corps Warsaw had mentioned had only been established in 1999 and was not yet certified by NATO. Germany was one of the fiercest opponents of the U.S.-led war in Iraq, ruling out involvement of its soldiers even if the invasion had won U.N. backing. (Reuters) A.C.