WARSAW, March 4 (Reuters) - Poland has signalled it wants to keep its troops in Chad when the United Nations takes over peacekeeping duties from the EU this month, saying U.N. funding will make this more cost-effective than pulling out now. Last month Poland's centre-right government, battling a sharp economic slowdown, announced plans to cut troop missions abroad, including in Chad, as part of plans to save some 2 billion zlotys ($535.2 million) for the defence ministry budget.

But in a statement issued late on Tuesday, the government said keeping its 300 troops in the African country would be economical because the U.N. would pay part of the costs, estimated at 59.2 million zlotys in total.

"Leaving the EU operation and not participating in the U.N. mission would mean having to bear all the costs of withdrawing the Polish troops and equipment," the statement said.

Ministry officials were not immediately available to comment on how much money would be saved by continuing the Chad mission.

The government has asked the president, who is commander in chief of the armed forces and must approve any such decision, to allow Polish troops to stay in Chad until the end of November, the statement said.

The European Union mission, which expires this month, is deployed in eastern Chad to protect more than half a million refugees and civilians who have fled violence in neighbouring Sudan's war-torn Darfur region.

Poland recently said it would not expand its 1,600-strong contingent in Afghanistan as previously planned because of the defence ministry budget cuts. It also said it would withdraw troops from missions in Lebanon and the Golan Heights. (Writing by Gabriela Baczynska, editing by Gareth Jones and Mark Trevelyan)

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