Bulgaria concludes arms deal with Iraq

SOFIA - Bulgaria has signed a contract with Baghdad to supply light weaponry to Iraq, a member of the Bulgarian parliament's defence and security committee said on Monday.
Tsonko Kirov said the deal involved pistols and automatic rifles produced in Sopot and Kazanlak in central Bulgaria, but did not specify the value of the contract.
"At this point we are working to restore stability to Iraq, which is why we are selling these arms," Kirov told the Bulgarian news agency BTA.
Bulgaria is part of the US-led coalition in Iraq with a contingent of 462 soldiers stationed there. But the defence ministry plans to reduce its deployment to 370 troops in June and has proposed a complete withdrawal by the end of the year.

03/28/2005 16:39 GMT