It said the Moldovan force would return from Iraq following a decision by the Multinational Force Command made at Baghdad's request to cut back the number of military personnel involved in the operation.
Moldova's sixth and last contingent of 20 military personnel, including sixteen mine engineers and four staff officers, was deployed to Iraq on August 19, 2008. An Explosive Ordnance Disposal team was attached to the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment in Mosul and the four staff officers attached to the Multinational Force-Iraq headquarters in Baghdad.
Moldova first sent troops to Iraq on September 8, 2003, immediately after the Moldovan parliament approved their participation in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Their missions included patrolling, providing security for convoys, engineer reconnaissance, and destruction of unexploded ordnance.
