Australia to deploy another 300 troops to Iraq

Australia today said it would send another 300 soldiers to Iraq in a joint training mission with New Zealand to boost local security forces fighting against Islamic State militant group in the strife-torn nation.
Around 200 Australian special forces are already training Iraqi soldiers against Islamic State militants in Iraq.
Federal Cabinet has agreed to send up to 300 more troops as part of a joint training mission with New Zealand, ABC reported.
The move of the joint training mission was indicated last week by New Zealand Prime Minister John Key, who had told his country's parliament that over 140 New Zealand troops would be sent to Iraq as part of a new deployment alongside Australian personnel.

"This is likely to be a joint training mission with Australia, although it won't be badged an Anzac force," he said.
Key phoned Australian counterpart Tony Abbott ahead of his announcement and the two leaders discussed the issue when the Australian Prime Minister visited Auckland over the weekend, the report said.

The Australian Opposition is also supporting the deployment of troops to Iraq but on four conditions.
The four conditions are that the troops must be there at the request of Iraq's government, the mission must be confined to Iraq, Australian ground combat units must not be deployed and if the Iraqi security forces engage in unacceptable conduct or if they adopt unacceptable policies then Australia should withdraw its support.

The report said that joint deployment by the two countries would aim at training Iraqi troops to take back cities, including Mosul, held by the Islamic State.
Assistant Defence Minister Stuart Robert, "Mosul is a city of up to 2 million people. The last time a city of that size was taken would probably be Seoul in 1951, and, before that, Berlin in 1945. So don't underestimate the complexity of this task."
In an official statement later, Abbott said that the Australian government has decided to commence the preparation and training of a force to contribute to the international Building Partner Capacity (BPC) mission in Iraq.

The Australian BPC force would be based at Taji, northwest of Baghdad, and the mission is expected to commence in May, 2015.
The Australian contribution would include around 300 Australian Defence Force personnel centred on a training team. The force would also comprise a substantial force protection element along with command and support elements, it said.
The US military along with allies, including Australia, has been conducting a campaign of air strikes against the militants in Iraq and Syria.
Australia's role is restricted to aerial support, training, advice and intelligence.