Andras Simonyi, Hungarian ambassador to
the United States, repeated his government's commitment to keep troops in
Iraq despite political opposition in his country. Hungary has about 300
troops in Iraq.
"We will not leave Iraq,"
Simonyi said. "I want everyone in the United States to understand that
Hungarian troops will be side by side with American troops, and the
Hungarian flag will fly with the U.S. flag."
The ambassador was visiting St. Louis on
Wednesday as part of an investment and trade promotion tour.
The Hungarian parliament blocked an
extension of the Hungarian deployment and the troops will start to withdraw
this month. However, the government plans to send other troops next year to
Iraq to protect NATO military instructors training Iraqi troops, according
to The Associated Press. Hungary is a member of NATO.
Greg Cancelada of the Post-Dispatch
contributed to this report.
