Defence minister visits Italian troops in Afghanistan

'Italy is proud of you' Pinotti tells soldiers

(ANSA) - Rome, August 5 - Italian Minister of Defence Roberta Pinotti on Tuesday thanked Italian troops participating in the 48-nation, NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) mission in Afghanistan. "You can be satisfied with the success of the (elections) held within your area of responsibility," she told the troops in the Afghan city of Herat.

Pinotti said that voter turnout reached 58%, compared to just 31% in 2009, and that 44% of those who voted were women. "Italy is proud of you," Pinotti said. "You are the best advertisement for our country abroad". Italy's military presence after the ISAF mission ends in 2014 will hinge on future agreements with the United States and NATO, the minister explained.

NATO's primary objective in Afghanistan is to help the government develop and train new security forces. Since 2011, security tasks have been gradually shifted to the Afghans and ISAF's mission has shifted from what NATO calls "a combat-centric role" to training, advising and assisting.