GUNNER
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Poland Extends Afghanistan Mission
WARSAW, Oct 18, 2010 - Poland on Monday extended the deployment of its 2,600 troops in NATO-led international forces in Afghanistan to April 13, 2011, according to a statement issued by Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski.
The number of Polish troops, currently deployed in Afghanistan's eastern Ghazni province, will not change over the next six months, the Monday statement said.
Last week Polish Defence Minister Bogdan Klich said his country's continued presence in Afghanistan hinges on guarantees from NATO allies for its own national security.
"Our allies know our engagement in Afghanistan depends on NATO's security guarantees for Poland. So the future of our deployment in Afghanistan also depends on the outcome of the NATO summit in Lisbon," Klich told the daily Gazeta Wyborcza.
Last month Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski called on NATO to set out an exit strategy from Afghanistan when the Atlantic alliance holds a summit in the Portuguese capital on November 19-20.
Poland joined NATO in 1999, 10 years after breaking free from the crumbling communist bloc, and has become a key player.
Klich said that Poland still wanted clarity about collective defence.
"We want Article Five of the Washington Treaty, guaranteeing the help of allies for a NATO member state that comes under attack, to have not only a political character but also to include concrete military commitments," he said.
During his presidential election campaign in June, Komorowski, a key ally of Poland's liberal government, pledged to bring Polish troops home from Afghanistan by 2012.
With some 2,600 troops, Poland is one of the top contributors to NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan.
Around 150,000 foreign troops, plus Afghan government forces, are battling hardline Islamist Taliban insurgents and their allies.
Twenty-two Polish soldiers have been killed since Poland first sent troops there in March 2002.
Klich said that from 2012, Polish combat troops could be replaced by units to train the Afghan military and police, and supply humanitarian aid.
WARSAW, Oct 18, 2010 - Poland on Monday extended the deployment of its 2,600 troops in NATO-led international forces in Afghanistan to April 13, 2011, according to a statement issued by Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski.
The number of Polish troops, currently deployed in Afghanistan's eastern Ghazni province, will not change over the next six months, the Monday statement said.
Last week Polish Defence Minister Bogdan Klich said his country's continued presence in Afghanistan hinges on guarantees from NATO allies for its own national security.
"Our allies know our engagement in Afghanistan depends on NATO's security guarantees for Poland. So the future of our deployment in Afghanistan also depends on the outcome of the NATO summit in Lisbon," Klich told the daily Gazeta Wyborcza.
Last month Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski called on NATO to set out an exit strategy from Afghanistan when the Atlantic alliance holds a summit in the Portuguese capital on November 19-20.
Poland joined NATO in 1999, 10 years after breaking free from the crumbling communist bloc, and has become a key player.
Klich said that Poland still wanted clarity about collective defence.
"We want Article Five of the Washington Treaty, guaranteeing the help of allies for a NATO member state that comes under attack, to have not only a political character but also to include concrete military commitments," he said.
During his presidential election campaign in June, Komorowski, a key ally of Poland's liberal government, pledged to bring Polish troops home from Afghanistan by 2012.
With some 2,600 troops, Poland is one of the top contributors to NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan.
Around 150,000 foreign troops, plus Afghan government forces, are battling hardline Islamist Taliban insurgents and their allies.
Twenty-two Polish soldiers have been killed since Poland first sent troops there in March 2002.
Klich said that from 2012, Polish combat troops could be replaced by units to train the Afghan military and police, and supply humanitarian aid.
