BUCHAREST: Romania will send around 150 additional troops to Afghanistan to take part in intelligence gathering and training of the Afghan army, President Traian Basescu said yesterday.

“In the coming months, we’ll send 140-150 additional soldiers to Afghanistan, who will be involved in intelligence gathering, medical assistance and training of Afghan troops,” Basescu told a joint news conference with NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer.

The decision to boost the Romanian contingent had already been approved by parliament, he added. Romania currently has 956 soldiers in Afghanistan, including 899 in NATO’s International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) peacekeeping and 57 as part of a US-led force fighting Taliban insurgents. The NATO chief was on a one-day visit to Bucharest, where he also paid tribute to the 11 Romanian soldiers who have been killed on duty in Afghanistan.