Romania sends last military mission to Afghanistan

Bucharest: The troops of the Romanian 20th Infantry Battalion left Sunday for Afghanistan for the last mission, Xinhua reported.

The Romanian troops, dubbed the Black Scorpions, have carried out numerous missions in Afghanistan, Bosnia and Iraq. This time, the main mission of the Black Scorpions is keeping the security and stability in the area in which they will work, supporting in extending the governmental authority as well as ensuring the free movement of the coalition forces. At the end of the mission, which will last six months, the Black Scorpions will also be in charge of the repatriation of the military equipment from Afghanistan. This is the last battalion taking part in missions in Afghanistan before the Afghan Army takes control. Romania began to send troops to Afghanistan in July 2002. At present there are 1,014 Romanian servicemen in Afghanistan.