Czech soldiers leave for peacekeeping mission in Bosnia Herzegovina

Forty-five Czech soldiers—two of them women--from the 72nd mechanical battalion have left for a six-month mission in Bosnia Herzegovina. They will provide security services as part of the European Union's peacekeeping operations in the region. This is the first time that soldiers from the 72nd mechanical battalion are serving as part of an international mission. Another twenty soldiers are due to join the group in mid-June. Twenty-two European countries participate in EUFOR missions, and the Czech Republic joined this international team in July 2004.