A final decision on the location for South Korea's additional troop deployment in Iraq has been delayed for the second time.

The National Security Council had planned on reaching a final decision during its meeting on Thursday, but postponed the decision, citing the need for in-depth consultations with the leadership of candidate sites Irbil and Sulaimaniyah in the northern Kurdish region.

The government added that discussions on the usage of an airport for supply are another important factor in the decision-making process.

The Defense Ministry announced last week that it had tentatively selected Irbil as the deployment site.