KYIV. Aug 7 (Interfax-Ukraine) - The first unit of Ukraine's peacekeeping contingent left on a mission to Iraq on Thursday.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Yevhen Marchuk, chairman of the parliamentary committee for national security and defense Heorhiy Kryuchkov, government officials, members of public organizations and relatives came to Kyiv's Borispol airport to see off the peacekeepers.
Sixty-nine servicemen of the Armed Forces 5th mechanized brigade left aboard a defense ministry IL-76 Candid airplane to Kuwait. They will later join the international peacekeeping operation in Iraq.
An Interfax correspondent reported that another two airplanes with peacekeepers took off from Mykolayiv's airport in the early hours of Thursday. Another two airplanes are scheduled to take off from Kyiv's airport later in the day. A total of 345 servicemen will leave for the Persian Gulf on Thursday.
The 1,660-strong peacekeeping contingent is due to be transported to Kuwait on August 7-10.