Turkey also reserves the right to send troops to northern Iraq

Turkish Defence Minister Vecdi Gonul said Washington had also asked Turkey for Arabic-speaking nuclear experts and explosives specialists, and to contribute medical supplies and communications equipment.

Poland also said on Thursday it could send several hundred troops or police to help keep the peace.

Foreign Minister Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz said at the EU summit in Athens that Poland's forces could work under the auspices of the US-led coalition, but lacked the financial means to fund the operation on its own.

EUROPEAN TROOP OFFERS Albania - 70 commandos Bulgaria - 100 troops Czech Republic - field hospital with 250 staff Denmark - 360 staff to join 3,000 at reconstruction and security unit Italy - 2,500-3,000 troops without combat role Poland - Several hundred troops or police

Denmark said earlier it was considering a US request to lead a 3,000-man force including personnel from Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia.

But the force appears to have been planned without the knowledge of other EU members such as France.

The BBC's William Horsley in Athens says it is possible to see in this signs of growing American influence over the EU's member-states.

The EU's own so-called rapid reaction force, which was meant to be operational in part for crisis management tasks from the start of this year, is not on offer to help in Iraq.

Need for contracts

Poland already has some 200 troops in Iraq, including some elite commandos.

Mr Cimoszewicz said that while Poland backed an EU statement calling for a central role for the United Nations it wanted to play a major role itself.

"We want to play an important role in rebuilding Iraq," he said. "We used to have good contacts with that country."

Poland has been open about its desire to obtain contracts in Iraq for its chemicals, fuel and construction companies.

Italy has formally offered 2,500 men for peacekeeping and several other eastern European states which sent back-up military or medical teams to the Gulf during the war have signalled they are willing to play a role in the post-war period.

The Iraq crisis has deeply divided the EU, with the UK, Spain, Italy, Denmark and most candidate countries backing the US, while France, Germany and others opposed the war.

US-Turkish relations suffered a serious set-back when the Turkish parliament refused to allow American soldiers to use Turkey as a staging post for the war in Iraq.