Britain may increase Afghan troops

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There has been no official indication from the Ministry of Defence of any plan to reinforce the 7,700 UK troops already in Afghanistan, but Nato spokesman James Appathurai said he understood the UK was talking about "potentially increasing" its force.

Mr de Hoop Scheffer will use a Nato summit in the Netherlands on October 24-25 to call on member states for additional military contributions to its mission in Afghanistan, which Mr Appathurai said was at 90%-95% of intended strength.

He played down the prospect that Canada or the Netherlands may downgrade their presence in the south of Afghanistan, where they have joined the UK and US in taking on the task of bringing security to the most lawless parts of the country.

Mr Appathurai told BBC Radio 4's The World This Weekend: "In the south, we don't think the Dutch are going to leave. The Canadians are looking at exactly what they can do. The British are talking in the south not only about keeping what they have, but potentially increasing it."

He added: "We are not pessimistic at all. We hope the Dutch will stay, we hope the Canadians will stay and we are working to convince them to do that in one form or another."

Any suggestion that Britain should increase its commitment in Helmand province, where troops have been engaged in fierce fighting with Taliban militias, will be controversial. Politicians of all parties have long said that the UK is bearing too much of the burden in Afghanistan and urged Nato allies to do more.