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| Afghanistan |
| German president visits troops in Afghanistan |
| 2010-05-22 |
| BERLIN (AFP) – German President Horst Koehler praised Germany's troops in Afghanistan in a surprise visit Friday and said he would work to see their efforts are recognised, the defence ministry said. Koehler made a stopover in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif in his first trip to the country where Germany has stationed 4,500 troops in a NATO-led International Security Assistance Force tackling a Taliban-led insurgency. He told the soldiers their mission in Afghanistan was "difficult and dangerous" but legitimate. "I am going to do all that I can for the work that you do in Afghanistan, for our homeland, for the people here and for more security in the world, is recognised in Germany," he said. The military mission in Afghanistan is deeply unpopular with the German public. Parliament however approved in February the extension of the deployment and dispatch of an extra 850 soldiers. |
| Posted by:Steve White |