Iohannis: I have told Allies Romania is to increase number of personnel in Afghanistan to 950-plus next year

President Klaus Iohannis said on Thursday he had told NATO allies that Romania would increase the number of personnel in Afghanistan next year to over 950 servicemen, gendarmes and civilians. 

"We pledged for the first time in the Country's Supreme Defence Council and today I have told the Allies that we will increase the number of personnel in Afghanistan from the current 770 and some people, especially servicemen, to more than 950 next year, who will be military staff, gendarmes and civilians. It is a significant growth for Romania, but it happens under the conditions in which we have long understood and are convinced that NATO is not only about receiving security but also about giving security, about being a security factor in the region we are in," Iohannis said after the North Atlantic Alliance Summit, held in Brussels. 

He stressed that the presence of Romania and other allies in Afghanistan is taking place on the basis of Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty. 

"We have understood our role, we are taking it seriously, and our soldiers are very much appreciated in Afghanistan, and I can say as President that I am proud of them," Klaus Iohannis said.