Azerbaijan withdraws peacekeepers from Afghanistan
By Vafa Ismayilova
Azerbaijan has fully withdrawn its peacekeepers from Afghanistan, the Defence Ministry reported on August 26.
''On August 26, at about 0100, 120 Azerbaijani peacekeepers serving at the Kabul International Airport of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan in full staff were withdrawn from the country," the ministry said.
It added that the Azerbaijani peacekeepers, their weapons, and military equipment were transported to Ankara by air and the servicemen are to return to the motherland shortly.
"The Azerbaijani peacekeepers who successfully performed the assigned tasks along with the fraternal Turkish Forces ensured security in Afghanistan fulfilling their duties with high professionalism," the report added.
The Azerbaijani army's 120-member peacekeeping contingent, jointly with Turkish forces, carried out official duties to ensure the security of the Kabul International Airport.
The Azerbaijani army's peacekeeping detachment was formed in 1997. The Azerbaijani servicemen acted within the NATO/U.S.-led peacekeeping forces in Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq, and South Sudan from September 1999.
Azerbaijan joined with a platoon to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) consisting of 21 soldiers in November 2002 to contribute to peace, security, and order in Afghanistan. On 9 January 2018, the number of Azerbaijani peacekeepers in Afghanistan was increased to 120 servicemen under a parliamentary decision.
The Taliban armed group retook power in Afghanistan 20 years after it was toppled by the USA. The collapse of the Ashraf Ghani government in Kabul came in the wake of Taliban blitzkrieg that began on August 6 and led to the capture of more than two dozen Afghan provinces by the morning of August 15.
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