AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE,
BERLIN: The new German government on Tuesday said it would contribute policemen to European Union missions in the Palestinian territories and Moldova and extend the mandate of its soldiers serving in the African Union mission in Sudan.
Chief government spokesman Ulrich Wilhelm said the government had decided to take part in two EU police force missions in the Palestinian territories.
Fifteen German policemen and customs officers will join a mission in Rafah on the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt, which is due to start on Friday.
Another 10 advisors are due to help the Palestinian police in a separate EU mission that is due to start at the beginning of January.
The government has also agreed to contribute up to 15 policemen and customs officers to a EU surveillance mission along the border between Moldova and Ukraine.
Some of the German contingent can also be deployed along the border region of Transdniestr, an area that is the subject of a dispute between Russia and Moldova.
The mission is due to start on December 1 and last for 18 months.
The government has also decided to prolong the mandate of its soldiers taking part in the EU surveillance mission in strife-torn Darfur in western Sudan (AMIS), but the decision must be approved by the Bundestag lower house of parliament.
The mandate allows for up to 200 German soldiers to be deployed there at a time. They provide logistical support with the transport of African soldiers.
The new government of Chancellor Angela Merkel that took power last week has also committed itself to continuing Germany's involvement in international missions in the Balkans and Afghanistan.
