Prime Minister Alenka Bratušek underlined as she addressed a ceremony welcoming back the last Slovenian contingent to have been deployed to Afghanistan.

She praised the troops for their contribution to stability in Afghanistan. "Taking part in the mission, you faced demanding logistic challenges and cooperated with partner countries," the PM said at the Maribor barracks.

"During the time Slovenian forces were in Afghanistan, the country has made a significant progress in this specific environment in terms of security and culture," said the PM adding that Slovenia upgraded its initial tasks in the mission.

Although the ceremony marked the end of Slovenia's presence in Afghanistan, four soldiers will remain in the country until late July. Two soldiers will remain in Afghanistan until the official completion of ISAF mission at the end of the year.

Since the first deployment in February 2004, nearly 1,300 Slovenian soldiers have been sent to Afghanistan.