German troops to stay in Afghan north

Germany's defense minister defended his army's efforts in the north of Afghanistan on Friday, rejecting a written plea from Defense Secretary Robert Gates for more help in the volatile south.

Defense Minister Franz Josef Jung insisted that German troops will remain in the relatively calm north. He was responding to a letter from the U.S. defense secretary to all NATO partners reportedly urging them to send more forces to join the fight against Taliban and other militants in southern Afghanistan.

"I have a clear mandate from the German parliament," Jung told reporters Friday. "It consists of 3,500 soldiers serving along the northern border and only helping out in the south for a limited period of time, as needed."

The refusal of Germany, along with France, Turkey and Italy, to send significant number of troops to the southern front lines has opened a rift within NATO.

Troops from Canada, Britain, the Netherlands and the United States have borne the brunt of a resurgence of Taliban violence in the region, with support from Denmark, Romania, Estonia and non-NATO nation Australia.

Gates has been trying recently to persuade NATO allies to contribute more troops and equipment to the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, without much success.

"It's going to be up to the individual states to make decisions about allocation of resources," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters.

"I won't make a secret of the fact that we are encouraging all of our NATO allies to do everything they can in terms of contributing resources," he said in Washington.

But Germany has shown little inclination to reallocate troops.

"If friends need help, then we will respond with support for a limited time — as stipulated in our mandate," Jung said. "But I think that our emphasis needs to remain in the north."

According to Germany's Sueddeutsche Zeitung daily, the letter from Gates is 1 1/2 pages long and specifically asks for helicopter units, infantry and paratroopers that could join the fight against Taliban militants in the south.

The issue is expected to feature prominently in discussions at an informal meeting of NATO defense ministers in Vilnius, Lithuania, next month.