Colombia will increase the number of its troops in Afghanistan, sending soldiers trained in counter-insurgency, the South American country’s foreign minister announced Thursday.
Without yet knowing how many more troops will be sent, Foreign Minister Jaime Bermudez said that there “will certainly be personnel with combat capacity.”
Bermudez, taking part in a summit on Afghanistan in London, told the central Asian country that Colombia can contribute to the strengthening of its institutions and governance, and the reintegration of former insurgents, the foreign minister’s website said.
Before the summit, Bermudez had said that Afghanistan can use Colombia’s fight against insurgent groups as a “model of success.”
“Colombia is a country that has suffered a lot because of drug trafficking and terrorism … Just as we ask for cooperation, we are willing to offer it. Because of this, we are supporting Afghanistan,” said Bermudez.
Colombia is the only South American country with troops in Afghanistan. The Colombians’ task at the moment consists mainly of demining.
