S Korea approves troops for Iraq

South Korea has announced it will send a contingent of 3,000 troops to help reconstruction in Iraq, ending months of debate about the deployment.

President Roh Moo-hyun endorsed the plan, which is set to involve a mixture of combat and non-combat troops, at a cabinet-level security meeting.

The deployment now needs to be approved by the National Assembly, where the opposition Grand National Party has already indicated its backing.

The Defence Minister, Cho Young-kil, said it would take at least four months to prepare for the deployment.

After the announcement, a seven member military delegation left for the United States to co-ordinate where and when the troops should be deployed.

South Korea already has several hundred army engineers and medics operating in the southern Iraqi city of Nasiriya.

Sending combat troops to Iraq has been controversial and prompted mass demonstrations in Seoul.

But President Roh has pushed for the deployment, arguing it was needed to show the country's commitment to its close alliance with the US.