KYIV. Feb 7 (Interfax-Ukraine) - A Ukrainian peacekeeper was found dead in Baghdad on Sunday.
Doctors from a military hospital in Baghdad said that the death of Colonel Roman Serednitsky could have been caused by a heart attack, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry's press service said.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Anatoly Hrytsenko has ordered a detailed investigation into the incident and extended his profound condolences to the officer's family and relatives. Serednitsky is survived by his wife and two daughters, who live in Kyiv.
Ukraine sent a peacekeeping contingent to Iraq on June 5, 2003. This initiative was put forth by the country's president and approved by parliament. Some 1,600 Ukrainian soldiers equipped with more than 2,000 items of military hardware have been serving in Iraq since August 2003. Eighteen Ukrainian peacekeepers have been killed and several dozen injured over this period.