ANKARA - "The decree on deployment of Turkish soldiers in Lebanon (within the UN peacekeeping force) will be sent to Parliament today," Turkish FM Abdullah Gul told reporters on Friday.
"Parliament will debate the motion on Tuesday," he added in a joint news conference he held in Ankara with Hikmet Cetin who completed his term as NATO's senior representative to Afghanistan.
When asked about the number of soldiers, who will be deployed in Lebanon, Gul said that it is a technical issue.
Regarding the news reports claiming that forces in Lebanon will be involved in clashes and can be forced to disarm groups (i.e. Hezbollah), Gul stressed that Turkish soldiers would not assume such a mission.
Gul noted that Turkish soldiers would be deployed in Lebanon just to restore peace, and not to fight. "Turkish soldiers will organize and support humanitarian aid in Lebanon," he added.