About 150 Georgian soldiers have returned home after serving six months in Afghanistan in a NATO-led peacekeeping mission.
Emotions were high in Tbilisi today as the group of soldiers from the 22nd Battalion of the II Infantry Brigade of the Georgian Armed Forces (GAF) touched down Georgian soil before being greeted by Defence Ministry officials.
Photo by the Defence Ministry's press office.
Last week the soldiers were officially relieved of their duties by the next rotation of Georgian soldiers who pledged to continue the peacekeeping duties within the Resolute Support mission under the United States contingent in the Afghan Province of Parwan.
Photo by the Defence Ministry's press office.
"This is an ordinary rotation and we welcomed home one company of the 22nd Battalion,” Deputy Chief of Staff of the GAF Colonel Omar Begoidze said.
"The rotation will be over by the end of April. These soldiers successfully carried out their tasks on the Bagram Air Base - guarding the security of the facility.”
"We are very proud to meet the personnel of the best military unit today,” Begoidze said.
Photo by the Defence Ministry's press office.
Another military unit, the 52nd Battalion of the V Infantry Brigade, has already taken over the responsibility of the departed servicemen.
Georgia is the largest non-NATO contributor to the Resolute Support mission with 885 troops. The aim of the mission is to provide further training, advice and assistance for the Afghan security forces and institutions after the completion of the ISAF mission, to which Georgia contributed about 750 soldiers.