Bulgaria sends new contingent of army to Afghanistan

Bulgaria on Tuesday sent a new contigent of about 300 soldiers to participate in the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) stationed in Afghanistan. The 15th company will perform tasks related to the security of the inner zone of the Kandahar airport, the defense ministry said in a press release. "Participation of our military forces in missions abroad is the best evidence that the Republic of Bulgaria performs correctly and with dignity its obligations to NATO and the European Union," Defense Minister Angel Naydenov said at the departure ceremony held in the town of Stara Zagora, some 230 km southeast of the country's capital Sofia. Bulgaria's contribution was valuable and important for the UN in maintaining peace and security globally, the minister said. The contingent was the most numerous Bulgarian military formation abroad, he said. Bulgaria also took part in missions and operations in Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Mediterranean, off the coast of Somalia; in Mali, Liberia and Eritrea, Naydenov said. Bulgaria, which joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 2004, has been participating in the NATO-led ISAF mission since 2002. In January, the Balkan country decided to withdraw some 40 percent of its 600-member contingent stationed in Afghanistan during the first half of 2013. The contingent guarding Kandahar Airport will return home at the end of 2014, and only adviser teams will stay in Afghanistan after 2015.