Turkey extends its NATO mission in Afghanistan

Turkish Parliament approved a motion to extend Turkish armed forces troops' stay in Afghanistan as part of NATOs support mission, state-run Anadolu news agency reported.

According to the report, Parliament on Tuesday empowered the government to continue Turkish troops' presence in Afghanistan for two more years under the NATO mission starting on January 6.

A legislation put into effect on January 1, 2015, allowed the Turkish government to send troops to Afghanistan to support the NATO-led mission Resolute Support.

As the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force ended its 13-year combat mission in Afghanistan at the end of 2014, the mission evolved into training and advising of the nascent Afghan security forces.

Around 12,000 foreign troops from 28 NATO allies and 14 other partner nations agreed to support the NATO mission in Afghanistan.

The Tukish legislation that was passed in 2015 also grants the government authority to permit foreign army personnel to be transported to and from Afghanistan through Turkey.

--IANS

soni/vt