Bulgarian President Georgi Purvanov has sent a letter of condolence to his French counterpart Nicolas Sarkozy regarding the death of 10 French soldiers, part of International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan.

Purvanov expressed his confidence that the loss would not impede France's active efforts towards the stabilisation of Afghanistan, a goal Bulgaria was also wedded to, the letter read, as quoted by the President's office.

On August 19, 10 French soldiers were killed and 31 were injured in a Taleban fighters' ambush east of Afghanistan's capital of Kabul.  The assault was carried out amid warnings that insurgents are closing in on the capital city, BBC said. It was the heaviest loss suffered by the French military since 58 paratroopers were killed in Beirut in 1983. Following the assault, Sarkozy insisted France remained committed to the fight against terrorism, and that the mission in Afghanistan would continue.

Bulgarian troops in Afghanistan were in tip top fighting condition following the ambush, Major-General Galimir Pehlivanov, from the General Staff of Bulgarian Army, told journalists. The troops had received orders to upgrade security measures and were in close communication with rapid reaction forces and the helicopter support, because there were tip-offs regarding assaults linked to the celebration of Afghanistan's independence from the UK (August 19), Pehlivanov said as quoted by mediapool.bg.

He insisted there was no direct threat for the Bulgarian troops. They continue to patrol in their zones and carried out their everyday tasks, he said.

Currently, there are 490 Bulgarian army personnel in Afghanistan,serving in the capital of Kabul and at Kandahar international airport.