Paris - The French government will deploy six Mirage jet- fighters to Kandahar in the south of the country from a base in Tadjikistan, the daily Le Figaro reported Friday. The move is regarded in France as a signal to NATO of French willingness to increase its commitment to the conflict in Afghanistan.
The French Defence Ministry said the deployment of the three Mirage D 2000 and three Mirage F1 CR planes will be carried out in the coming weeks.
Ministry spokesman Laurent Teisseire said the deployment is to be made for "operational" and "logistical" reasons. Being based in Kandahar, the French aircraft will be able to significantly increase their time patrolling the skies above combat zones.
The base at Kandahar is home to some 11,000 American, British, Canadian, Dutch and Australian soldiers as well as some 100 planes and drones.
