The soldiers will be involved in an offensive in Afghanistan

It will involve soldiers from four of the Royal Regiment of Scotland's five regular infantry battalions.

They will travel to Helmand province in May for a six-month deployment, attached to 16th Air Assault Brigade.

The brigade will take responsibility for the province, where most of the British personnel in the country are based.

They will be deployed over the next few weeks to prepare for a spring offensive against the Taleban.

'Trained hard'

The Argylls and the Royal Highland Fusiliers will each be sending more than 500 men who will be joined by about 120 soldiers from the Highlanders and 120 from the Dragoon Guards.

The deployment will replace units already in Afghanistan and does not alter the number of British troops in the country, which currently stands at nearly 8,000.

Lt Col David Richmond, commanding officer of the the Argylls, said his battalion had trained hard for the task.

He said: "We have prepared well, trained hard and been issued some excellent equipment."