AUSTRALIAN troops have withdrawn from all forward operating bases and patrol bases in Oruzgan, and handed over control of security in the province to Afghan forces.
And after 13 years keeping the peace in East Timor, the last remaining Australian troops will begin pulling out on Thursday as the tiny, young country begins a new chapter in its independence.
Forward operating and patrol bases in Afghanistan have been progressively handed over to Afghan control since October, and Australian troops will now operate only out of the multinational base in Tarin Kowt, Oruzgan's capital.
Australian troops - the 7th battalion, Royal Australian Regiment Task Group, this week took over from the 3rd battalion - will now be in an ''advising'' rather than a ''mentoring'' role.
Australian troops will advise and guide the leadership of the Afghan National Army's 4th Brigade, rather than mentoring at the Kandak - the Afghan name for a battalion - level.
''This marks the culmination of a whole lot of hard work as well as some blood that's been spilt in bringing the Afghans up to a standard where they can do the job themselves,'' Commander Combined Team Oruzgan, Colonel Simon Stuart said.
Australia has lost 39 soldiers in Afghanistan.
''The 4th Brigade is able to stand on their own two feet. Now we have the Afghan security forces, securing the Afghan people.''
Australian troops have been progressively handing over control of the forward operating and patrol bases over the past two months.
Wali base in Mirabad, Hadrian in Deh Rawud, Sorkh Bid in Nesh, and Wahab in the Baluchi Valley, where a rogue Afghan soldier killed three Australian troops in a green-on-blue attack in August, are all under Afghan authority.
The final forward operating base, Mirwais, in Chora, was handed over to Afghan control this week.
The announcement of the withdrawal of 390 Australian military personnel from East Timor came from Prime Minister Julia Gillard on Wednesday night.
Ms Gillard said East Timor - also known as Timor Leste - had seen its economy grow and its institutions evolve, with three successful rounds of national elections.
''Timorese security services have risen to the challenge and served their nation well throughout these events,'' she said.
Ms Gillard thanked the Australian Army, Navy and Air Force personnel for their ''great courage and dedication'' in helping maintain peace and stability in East Timor.
Australian troops went into the country in 1999 to quell pro-Indonesian militias who went on a violent rampage after the East Timorese voted for independence in a UN-backed referendum.
They have remained under various international mandates, with the International Stabilisation Force - which is Australian-led but includes New Zealand forces - taking over in 2006.
The pullout comes as a similar withdrawal is planned for troops stationed in the Solomon Islands, where Australia has about 150 military personnel and 200 police.
The East Timor withdrawal will continue through to April, as the troops repatriate equipment, close bases and return property and buildings to the government of East Timor.
