Australian Defence Minister John Faulkner is calling for the vacuum left in Afghanistan by the impending departure of the Dutch troops to be filled urgently. Mr Faulkner was speaking in Washington after a meeting with US Defence Secretary Robert Gates.

The Australians are expecting the Dutch to leave as planned by August 2010, which means the command position of allied troops in Uruzgan province needs to be replaced by then. Support in the Dutch parliament for an extension of the mission is minimal. Twenty-one Dutch troops have been killed since the beginning of Dutch military activities in southern Afghanistan in March 2006.

Australia not taking over
When asked by reporters whether Australia would be prepared to take over the command of the Uruzgan forces, Mr Faulkner rejected the option outright. Australian forces in the province number 980, slightly fewer than the current Dutch contingent of 1300. The government in Canberra says it is not prepared to send more troops into Afghanistan (now totalling 1550), despite calls by US President Barack Obama for a 40,000 increase.

Dutch troups have been involved in Afghanistan since 2002. Since 2006, the Netherlands leads ISAF's multinational 'Task Force Uruzgan'.

(ANP, Sydney Morning Herald)