BUCHAREST, Sept. 10 (Xinhua) -- Romanian Defense Minister Gabriel Les said on Tuesday that his country remains unwavering in the fight against terrorism. He spoke during the repatriation ceremony of the two Romanian citizens killed last week in Kabul.
"Our comrades bring to Afghanistan the kindness and compassion of the Romanian people, they are appreciated by both the alliance and the Afghan partners, but especially by the civilian population for their friendship, loyalty and humanity," said the defense minister, stressing that "those who go there on behalf of Romania and the international alliance must know that we remain unwavering in our determination to contribute to the international effort to combat terrorism."
Corporal 3rd Class Ciprian-Stefan Polschi, a driver in the NATO command structures in Kabul, lost his life on Sept. 5 following the explosion of a car bomb near the Green Zone in the capital of Afghanistan, while at the wheel of a service vehicle.
Vasile Raduna, representative of Romania's diplomatic mission in Kabul, died during the night of Sept. 2 to 3, when a terrorist attack took place on the campus where the Romanian Embassy was.
At the repatriation ceremony, which took place on Air Transport Base 90 in Otopeni, Bucharest, and was also attended by Foreign Minister Ramona Manescu, the presidential decrees were read by which the two were decorated post-mortem with the National Order "Star of Romania" in the rank of Knight with war mark.
Romania began to send troops to Afghanistan in 2002 and over the years, 15 Romanian soldiers have lost their lives in missions there, and over 50 were injured.
Currently, there are 762 Romanian soldiers in the theaters of operations in Afghanistan.
