KIEV, March 22 (Xinhuanet) -- Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko has formally signed an order for pulling out troops from Iraq, the country's security council said on Tuesday.

    The president signed the order for "a staged withdrawal" of Ukraine's peacekeeping contingent from Iraq, Petro Poroshenko, head of the National Security and Defense Council, told a news conference.

    The order is a "very carefully crafted document which details the terms of the Ukrainian pullout from Iraq," he said, adding that it will make the withdrawal irreversible.

    The deadline of the withdrawal will be fixed after consultations with other coalition members and the Ukrainian troops may leave Iraq in November or December, Poroshenko said.

    Ukraine has a 1,650-strong contingent in Iraq, the sixth-largest in the US-led coalition forces. So far, 18 Ukrainian soldiers were killed in the country and more than two dozen were wounded.

    Last Tuesday, about 137 soldiers returned home from Iraq. A further 550 troops were to be pulled out in May and the rest of the original contingent would be withdrawn by the end of the year.Enditem