New Zealand troops deploy to Timor Leste

A 62-strong New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) contingent from the 1st Battalion Royal New Zealand Infantry left for a six-month deployment to Timor- Leste Saturday, to support the Australian-led International Stabilization Force (ISF) in Timor-Leste.

The NZDF has supported various peacekeeping operations in Timor-Leste since 1999, when a referendum was held on independence from Indonesia, sparking violence.

The NZDF contribution includes a military observer with the United Nations Mission in Timor-Leste, five advisors to the F-FDTL, and four personnel in the National Support Element based in Darwin, Australia.

New Zealand to stay in Afghanistan for another year

WELLINGTON, 23rd March: Afghan security forces are set to take charge of the province where New Zealand forces have been stationed since 2003, but New Zealand's military presence in Bamiyan province will remain at current levels for at least a year.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai announced overnight that seven provinces including Bamiyan were ready to begin the transition to Afghan leadership, as a first step toward full Afghan control of the entire nation by the end of 2014.

New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully said on Wednesday that the current ceiling of 140 New Zealand defence force personnel in the provincial reconstruction team in Bamiyan would remain constant for at least the next year.

Karzai's announcement was a major milestone and a tribute to the "outstanding work" of the hundreds of New Zealand military, police, and civilian personnel who had served in Bamiyan, Mr. McCully said.

McCully said New Zealand's transition efforts would be watched carefully by the international community and the transition was not just about security, as Karzai noted in his speech.

Six New Zealand-born soldiers have died in Afghanistan since the war began.

Source: Xinnews