ARMENIA MULLS TROOP DEPLOYMENT IN AFGHANISTAN
By Astghik Bedevian
Radio Liberty, Czech Rep.
May 29 2007
Armenia is considering increasing the number of its peace-keeping
troops deployed in Kosovo and joining the NATO-led military mission
in Afghanistan, a senior Defense Ministry official said on Tuesday.
Major-General Mikael Melkonian, head of the ministry’s foreign
relations department, said Yerevan is discussing with the
governments of Britain and Greece the possibility of its involvement
in Afghanistan. He made it clear that it is prepared to help the
NATO-led multinational contingent stationed there only with non-combat
military personnel.
"We are not talking about sending a [combat] unit there right now
because that is a new, untested theater of military activities which
is not yet fully understandable to us," Melkonian told reporters.
"But we are ready to provide humanitarian assistance in the form of
medics and to send one or two staff officers."
Earlier this year, the U.S. military donated a mobile field hospital to
a special peace-keeping battalion of the Armenian army whose soldiers
and officers are currently serving in Kosovo and Iraq. The hospital
is to receive more U.S. equipment in the coming months.
The U.S. charge d’affaires in Yerevan, Anthony Godfrey, said during its
inauguration in February that the assistance is meant to facilitate
"future Armenian military deployments with coalition or NATO forces"
stationed in various conflict zones. In an earlier interview with
RFE/RL, Godfrey indicated that Washington would specifically welcome
a dispatch of Armenian military personnel to Afghanistan.
According to Melkumian, the Armenian government is also ready to
at least double the number of its combat troops serving in Kosovo
under NATO command. The platoon of 34 servicemen was deployed there
more than three years ago, marking the start of Armenia’s first-ever
military mission abroad.
Melkonian said that an increase and expansion of Armenian deployments
abroad would facilitate the peace-keeping battalion’s planned
transformation into a much bigger brigade. The volunteer unit was set
up in 2003 with the help of Greece and the United States as part of
Yerevan’s drive to forge closer military links with the West.