Italy steps up role in Afghanistan

The end of 2009 will see a considerable re-organisation of the Italian forces deployment in Afghanistan, which expanded from 2,795 to 3,200 personnel during the Afghan election with the deployment of the Election Support Forces (ESF).

Italy leads the Regional Command West (RC-W), providing 59 per cent of approximately 5,000 military personnel deployed in the area.

Compared with 2008, RC-W has expanded its reach significantly in the southern Farah province and in northern Badghis. In the north the Bala Murghab Forward Operating Base (FOB) has been strengthened; in the south the company was initially deployed at Farah then increased to a battalion level task force in the second quarter of 2009 with the deployment of the Folgore Parachute Brigade.

A second task force is based in Herat where RC-W Headquarters (HQ) is located with the ESF component forming a third task force in Shindand, halfway between Herat and Farah.

Meanwhile, a further Italian task force is operating in Kabul under the command of RC-Capital (RC-C).

Its task is to maintain security in the capital and in the Musahy Valley, which gives access to Kabul from the south, while avoiding the check-points manned by the Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police (ANA/ANP) along the national route.