Amsterdam - Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende on Monday announced the establishment of an "independent committee" to investigate the previous government's "political support" for the US- led invasion of Iraq in 2003.

In recent weeks opposition has mounted from opposition parties and within the government to openly question the then-government's decision making process in the weeks leading to the Iraq war.

The Dutch government did not provide military support in 2003 but did make a statement of "political support" for the Iraq war.

Speaking at a press conference, a visibly agitated Balkenende said he had established the "independent committee" following continued heated debate in the media and political circles.

However he defied pressure to launch a full parliamentary investigation, as demanded by the opposition.

In 2003, the Labour party, then the largest opposition party, was among those to oppose the decision made by the government led by Balkenende's Christian Democratic party.

Upon joining the new government coalition in 2006, Labour however agreed not to support any further parliamentary investigation into the Dutch decision making leading up to the Iraq war.

Parliamentary investigations in the US and elsewhere which found that Iraq did not have weapons of mass destruction continued to feed the Dutch debate about the decision-making process.

In recent weeks, several Dutch media outlets have published information about US-Dutch diplomatic contacts in the weeks leading up to the Iraq war, raising more questions about the Dutch decision- making process in 2003. (dpa)