British Prime Minister Gordon Brown says the UK will send an extra 500 troops to Afghanistan on the condition other countries also increase their deployments.

Great Britain has 9000 soldiers in Afghanistan, with most of them stationed in the southern province of Helmand. NATO has recently been putting pressure on member states to increase troop numbers in Afghanistan.

In the UK, there are increasing calls for the British troops to be brought home. Since 2001, when the war in Afghanistan began, 221 British soldiers have died and there are complaints that their equipment is not up to scratch. Mr Brown says every soldier serving in Afghanistan must have the proper equipment.

photo: Gordon Brown (Flickr / World Economic Forum)