A Georgian soldier has been killed in Afghanistan, the 16th to die while serving alongside NATO-led forces fighting the Taliban.
A statement from the Georgian Defense Ministry said the soldier was killed by a roadside bomb in southern Helmand Province.
Georgia, whose government has backed the country joining NATO, currently has some 800 soldiers serving in Afghanistan.
The parliament of Georgia -- a country of 4.4 million people -- voted in December to send an extra battalion to Afghanistan, which is expected to almost double the country's contingent there.
NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said earlier this month that Georgia has become a "model partner" for the alliance but that there is still a "long road" toward Georgian membership in NATO.
A statement from the Georgian Defense Ministry said the soldier was killed by a roadside bomb in southern Helmand Province.
Georgia, whose government has backed the country joining NATO, currently has some 800 soldiers serving in Afghanistan.
The parliament of Georgia -- a country of 4.4 million people -- voted in December to send an extra battalion to Afghanistan, which is expected to almost double the country's contingent there.
NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said earlier this month that Georgia has become a "model partner" for the alliance but that there is still a "long road" toward Georgian membership in NATO.
