New Zealand military committed to another year in Afghanistan

The New Zealand military is to maintain personnel levels in Afghanistan for another year, the New Zealand government announced Thursday. Twenty-seven New Zealand Defense Force (NZDF) personnel were deployed in "behind-the-wire roles" in Kabul, including at the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) headquarters, ISAF Special Operations Forces headquarters, and Afghan National Army Officer Academy (ANAOA). "The government has reviewed the mandate for these deployments, which is due to expire next April. Our 27 personnel will remain in Afghanistan to December 2014 to support the final stages of the ISAF mission," Defense Minister Jonathan Cole said in a statement. The ISAF mission would be replaced by a training, advice and assistance mission. "As previously announced, a small number of personnel are expected to remain at the UK-led Afghan National Army Officer Academy (ANAOA) in roles focused on training assistance and capacity building beyond 2014," Coleman said. Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully said New Zealand's work in Afghanistan was "business as usual." "New Zealand remains committed to fulfilling our role as part of the ISAF mission to secure the gains made in Afghanistan over the last decade," McCully said in the statement. "New Zealand will continue to make financial and development contributions to Afghanistan. The nature of those contributions has not been finalized." The NZDF pulled its Bamyan Provincial Reconstruction Team out of Afghanistan earlier this year.