Italy to pull out troops from Iraq

Italy plans to withdraw its troops from Iraq but not before elections and the establishment of a new government in Baghdad, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini was quoted in the country's press as saying Monday.

"On Iraq, Italy has very clear ideas," Frattini was quoted as saying during a trip to Washington at the weekend.

"We have a three-phase plan; the first is the election and we are working together so that the elections are real and they take place by January 2005," Frantini said.

The second stage would be a new Iraqi government chosen by the Iraqi people, he added.

"And to finish up, we will work so that the government invites other countries, Arab ones in particular, to be present on the ground," Frattini said.

The foreign minister mentioned no dates but the Italian press interpreted his comments as a signal for the announced Italian troop withdrawal.