Karzai presses UK for troops
Britain said yesterday it remains committed to keeping troops in Afghanistan for as long as Kabul needs them, after Afghan President Hamid Karzai held talks with Prime Minister Gordon Brown in London.
But there was no immediate response to an Afghan call for more international forces to be sent to quell Taliban insurgents in the violence-wracked country, where two more British soldiers died Wednesday.
More than two thirds of Britons want Brown to withdraw troops from Afghanistan next year, according to a new poll published as the latest deaths brought the British death toll to 124.
But a Ministry of Defence (MoD) spokesman reiterated London's commitment to Karzai's government.
"These most recent sacrifices demonstrate how important our role is in Afghanistan, fighting terrorism and helping to bring security and stability to the country, he said.
"It is vital to our own interests here in the UK that we continue with this and we will not allow their sacrifice to be in vain," he added.
Britain has more than 8,000 troops in Afghanistan, largely battling Taliban insurgents in the south, where two Royal Marines were killed while on a joint patrol Wednesday with Afghan security forces in the volatile Helmand province.
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