The Czech government announced on Wednesday it had approved the deployment of a special anti-terrorist unit in Afghanistan. "The operation will be a lot like that of 2004," said Ministry of Defence spokesman Andrej Cirtek, referring to the six-month mission of a special forces unit in Afghanistan during the "Enduring Freedom" campaign.
| Perhaps this will embarrass the Dutch enough to get them to move. |
The Czech force should leave for Afghanistan during the first half of this year, Cirtek added. The operation still requires the go-ahead from both chambers of the Czech parliament.
The deployment of the Czech special forces unit in Afghanistan was suggested by Defence Minister Karel Kuhnl when he met with his US counterpart Donald Rumsfeld in Washington at the end of 2005. |