Thursday, July 1, 2021

On Friday, the Ministry of Defense of Georgia announced military units of Georgia had completed “17 years of successful service” ^{((ka))Georgian language: ?17- ?????? ??????????? ????????? ?????????} in Afghanistan. The personnel landed at th Tbilisi International Airport where Deputy Commander of the Georgian Defense Forces, Brigadier General Joni Tatunashvili; the Commander of the West, Brigadier General Koba Grigolia and representatives of the Western Command were present.

Over 20 thousand Georgian servicemen had participated in international missions in Afghanistan since 2004. They served as a part of the 107 rotations at various levels like International Security Assistance Force and Resolute Support Mission. “32 servicemen were killed in the fight against international terrorism” ^{((ka))Georgian language: ????????????? ?????????? ?????????? ??????? 32 ???????? ??????????? ???????}, the statement said.

Georgia had sent some 860 servicemen in Afghanistan before withdrawal, local sources reported. Withdrawal of Georgian troops from Afghanistan began on May 21.

Previously in April, the US President Joe Biden announced plans to withdraw from Afghanistan by September 11, officially ending the US’ involvement in the 20-year-long war in Afghanistan. Similar troop withdrawals by the United Kingdom and NATO were also announced.