SEOUL, Oct. 30 (UPI) -- South Korea announced Friday it will send hundreds of troops and police to Afghanistan to protect an expanded force of civilian aid workers.

Plans are to operate an independent Provincial Reconstruction Team in Afghanistan and increase the number of reconstruction workers to at least 130, the Yonhap new agency reported.

South Korea now has two dozen medical and vocational training experts working north of Kabul.

"The Afghan government has so far asked our government through various channels to expand support for the stabilization and reconstruction of Afghanistan," Foreign Ministry spokesman Moon Tae-young said.

He did not reveal how many troops will be dispatched along with the civilian workers.

A senior ministry official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Yonhap the exact number of troops hasn't been decided yet.