Minister Upbeat Prior to Battalion's Departure for Kosovo
Defence Minister Karl Erjavec is convinced that the 10th Motorised Battalion would perform well in Kosovo. "I am sure that you will complete your mission with flying colours," the minister said in Ljubljana on Tuesday prior to the 600-strong battalion's departure for the province.
The battalion, slated to officially take control over the sector West on 1 March, is the largest Slovenian army formation to go abroad. Its members will remain in Kosovo until the end of August.
This is a new "milestone in the development of the Slovenian Armed Forces," as the country will for the first time get its own area of control, said Erjavec.
Taking part in the NATO-led KFOR international force will be 500 soldiers of the 10th battalion, while the remaining 100 personnel belong to military police, veterinary and medical units, logistics and helicopter units and other services.
The advance party departed for Kosovo on 1 February, while the last remaining troops are to arrive in Kosovo by the end of the month. The force, which will take control over the towns of Pec and Klina, will also include a 150-strong Hungarian unit.
According to Erjavec, the main task of the troops will be to stabilise the area. The Slovenian army's mission is not to "occupy " the province, he added.
The costs of the mission are assessed at EUR 7.06m, almost a quarter of the EUR 27.8m allocated for emergency response operations in 2007 by the Defence Ministry.
The number of Slovenian soldiers serving abroad is expected to increase to 983 this year, presenting 11% of the total number of soldiers and the highest share among all NATO countries.
Apart from Kosovo, Slovenian soldiers are serving in Afghanistan, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Lebanon, while four military instructors train Iraqi troops in Baghdad.
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