Azerbaijan To Withdraw Iraq Troops

BAKU, Azerbaijan — Azerbaijan's parliament has voted to pull the ex-Soviet republic's small peacekeeping force out of Iraq.

Lawmakers voted 86-1 on Friday to back President Ilham Aliev's request to withdraw the 150 troops serving as part of the U.S.-led coalition.

The contingent has served in Iraq since 2003, working mostly as sentries, on patrols and protecting dams near the city of Hadid. It is unclear when the pullout will be completed.

Aliev has sought to strengthen his oil- and gas-rich country's ties with the European Union and the United States, in part to balance Russia's enormous clout in the Caspian region.

The government earlier this year doubled its peacekeeping force in Afghanistan to 45 soldiers and has also sent troops to Kosovo.