New Kosova Report

Germany to send more troops to Kosovo

Friday, 29 February 2008

Germany to send more troops to Kosovo

Berlin - Germany said Friday it would move 400 extra soldiers to Kosovo in the next few days, but described it as a routine, month-long redeployment to replace withdrawing Italians. The German contingent total is to briefly rise to 2,700, exceeding that of Italy, currently the main peacekeeper nation in the Balkan state, which declared independence in February.

The German Army infantry's 1st regiment would arrive in Kosovo in early March, the operational command near Berlin said. Some 200 Austrian soldiers would travel with them.

The contingent would be equipped with armoured personnel vehicles.

Command officials said the deployment had been in planning for a long time and was not connected to the tension over the independence from Serbia.

The entire KFOR peace force comprises 16,000 personnel along with an "operational reserve force" comprising three battalions from three nations which take turns to deploy to Kosovo while the other two are on 7 to 14 days' call.

Italy is currently providing the reserve on the spot and will be relieved by the German battalion, which last served there in November and is set for another stint in July.