Bosnia-Herzegovina decides to send peacekeepers to Afghanistan

Bosnia-Herzegovina's three-member presidency on Monday decided to send a small number of peacekeepers to Afghanistan later this year.

The 10 Bosnian army officers will perform operative, administrative and other tasks with the German and Danish contingent as members of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan, a presidency statement said.

The decision, which has to be approved by the Bosnian parliament, is "one more step on the road towards (the country's) integration into Euro-Atlantic institutions," the presidency statement said.

Bosnia-Herzegovina, which joined NATO's Partnership for Peace Program in December 2006, withdrew its 90-strong contingent from Iraq in mid December. The troops were sent in June 2005 at a NATO request to support the U.S.-led coalition forces.

NATO leaders awarded Bosnia-Herzegovina in April 2008 an "intensified dialogue" on its membership aspirations, a step before a formal membership plan is granted. The Balkan country is expected to put forward "action plans" to prepare for membership.