TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Australia is to send 300 troops to Iraq to help train local security forces in their battle against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Prime Minister Tony Abbott said that the 300 soldiers are to be deployed at the Taji military base north of Baghdad and that they will be part of a joint Australia-New Zealand training mission.
New Zealand Prime Minister John Key also said on Tuesday that his country would send 143 of its own troops as part of the joint mission.
The deployment comes a day after Australia banned its citizens from travelling to Mosul, Iraq’s second-largest city which is controlled by ISIS. Violators will be jailed for nine years unless they have a legitimate reason for the trip, such as visiting their family.
Moreover, Abbott repeatedly stressed that the troops would not be engaged in fighting, in an attempt to rebuff concerns that Canberra is getting sucked into a new foreign combat operation.
Australia already has 170 special forces troops in Baghdad advising and assisting Iraqi security forces. Another 400 Australian air force personnel are supporting Australian air strikes against ISIL targets in northern Iraq from the al-Minhad Air Base outside Dubai.
