LISBON, Jan. 15 (Xinhuanet) -- Portugal confirmed Saturday it will withdraw its 120-strong military police contingent from Iraq on Feb. 12, after the scheduled Iraqi elections.

    The force, stationed in Nassariya, about 300 km south of Baghdad, will be pulled out as the Jan. 30 elections in Iraq are expected to usher in "a new phase of the political process," the government said in a statement.

    But the end of the mission will not mean an end of Portugal's assistance for the US-led coalition in the democratization processof Iraq, the statement said.

    The allies can count on Portugal's "full political support" andits help in "other means, including humanitarian relief and security duties," it said.

    Portuguese officers can help train Iraqi police in the future, either in Iraq or in Portugal, a government spokesman said Saturday.

    Portugal, a staunch ally of the United States in the Iraq War, sent about 120 officers of the National Republican Guard to Iraq in November 2003 on a one-year mission. The assignment was extended later by three months to help provide security for the Jan. 30 elections. Enditem