NATO gets no offers of extra Afghanistan troops

BRUSSELS, Sep 13 (Reuters) NATO members failed to offer any extra troops for a tough peacekeeping mission in southern Afghanstan at talks today and it could be weeks before reinforcements are committed, an alliance spokesman said.

''No formal offers were made at the table,'' spokesman James Appathurai told a regular news briefing.

However, he said there were ''positive indications'' that some allies might consider providing additional forces.

It could take until a meeting of NATO defence ministers on Sept.

28-29 in Slovenia to finalise offers for up to 2,500 extra troops requested urgently by NATO commanders to help cope with daily clashes with Taliban insurgents, Appathurai added.

National defence chiefs meeting at NATO military headquarters in southern Belgium had been expected to tell NATO commanders they were unable to come up reinforcements to help quell a fiercer-than-expected insurgency in south Afghanistan.

Appathurai said extra troops, attack helicopters and transport aircraft would boost NATO's mobility on the ground but insisted they were not needed to complete a continuing offensive against Taliban fighters in the Kandahar region.

''Operation Medusa is going well and achieving its operational objective,'' he said, adding NATO had gained command of around two-thirds of the territory covered in the operation.

Reuters LL RN2050