The Armenian parliament has approved the international agreement on longer-term presence of a peace-making mission in Afghanistan.

Under the document, five more Armenian servicemen will join the mission. The mission has been prolonged for 12 months. At present, 40 Armenian servicemen form part of the international mission in Afghanistan. RA Minister of Defense Seyran Ohanyan stated in Parliament Dec. 16 that NATO strategy necessitated the prolongation of the mission with involvement of more Armenian servicemen. The Minister stressed that Armenia must act in harmony with NATO and enlarge its mission in Afghanistan.

Strangely enough, the Armenian MPs, irrespective of their political views, unanimously approved the proposal.