Afghanistan 'needs' more troops

Up to 6,000 additional Nato soldiers are needed in Afghanistan if the alliance is to pull out of the country on schedule, a top general has warned.

Gen Egon Ramms told German radio the soldiers were needed now if Nato was to hand over responsibility for security to Afghan forces by 2012.

There are currently about 60,000 foreign soldiers in Afghanistan.

Most of them are part of the Nato-led International and Security and Assistance Force (Isaf).

Earlier this month, the former American general in charge of Nato forces in Afghanistan Gen Dan McNeill said that the war against the Taleban was "under-resourced".

"This is an under-resourced war and it needs more manoeuvre units, it needs more flying machines, it needs more intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance apparatus," he said.

A total of 17 coalition soldiers have been killed in the country over the past two weeks.

June has been one of the deadliest months for Western forces in Afghanistan since they began military operations against the Taleban in 2002.