Slovenian Instructors Have Hands Full Training Iraqi Soldiers
Slovenian military instructors have their hands full training Iraqi security forces, the Slovenian Armed Forces said in a press release on Wednesday.
The army said that the three non-commissioned officers and one commissioned officer are feeling fine but have a busy schedule at a military training centre near Baghdad.
According to the army, the four servicemen have not been exposed to the latest wave of sectarian violence to hit Iraq.
The soldiers have access to telephones to call loved ones back home, while they can also keep in touch via e-mail.
Moreover, the army said the servicemen are happy with the conditions at the Al-Rustamiya training facility on the southern outskirts of Baghdad.
The government decided to deploy the four soldiers on 12 January, claiming Slovenia was fulfiling its obligations as a NATO member.
The decision drew wide criticism from the opposition and peace activists, who claimed Slovenia had no obligation to deploy its soldiers in Iraq.
In a separate development, 53 Slovenian soldiers who served in the NATO-led ISAF mission in Afghanistan recently were conferred honorary medals from the Canadian Armed Forces.
The Canadian General Campaign Stars were conferred on the soldiers by Canadian Ambassador to Slovenian Robert Hage and Canadian Defence Attaché Lieutenant Michel Legault at the Vrhnika barracks near Ljubljana on Wednesday.
The ceremony was also attended by Defence Minister Karl Erjavec and Armed Forces Chief-of-Staff, Ladislav Lipic.
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