The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has begun training Iraq's security forces in the war-torn country, a NATO official said Wednesday.  

NATO's 50-strong team arrived in Iraq last week to help train the Iraqi security forces after the ambassadors of the 26-nation alliance agreed to send the training mission last month.

The official gave no details of the activities of the training mission in Iraq, led by Dutch Major General Carel Hilderink.

He said that they have started training, and NATO's training of Iraqi forces outside Iraq has also started.

NATO leaders decided at their summit in Istanbul, Turkey, in June to train Iraqi security forces.

Before the training team arrived in Iraq, NATO's role in the country had been limited to providing logistical backup to a Polish-led division working with the American troops.

(Xinhua News Agency August 19, 2004)