S. Korea trying to facilitate deployment of Lebanon peacekeepers

By Sam Kim
SEOUL, June 30 (Yonhap) -- South Korea is pushing to facilitate the deployment of
its peacekeeprs in Lebanon by lengthening intervals at which the government is
mandated to seek approval for extensions by the National Assembly.
The government is required to receive parliamentary approval each year to
continue to deploy 370 troops that have been stationed in Lebanon since 2007 as
part of a U.N. peacekeeping operation.
The Ministry of National Defense said in a report to the National Assembly that
the foreign ministry has recently submitted a proposal that the approval now be
required every one and a half year.
The mandate for the Dongmyeong unit stationed in the southern Lebanese city of
Tyre expires on July 18, the report said, adding that fiscal factors have been
considered in the proposal.
The peacekeeping unit monitors violence along the border with Israel while
performing patrol and reconstruction missions.
samkim@yna.co.kr
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