Broad Support for ISAF

German politicians said they would first decide whether to send more troops to Afghanistan after discussing the matter with the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) there and NATO partners, and once the army has determined whether or not it has the capacity to expand.

Senior politicians from Germany's two main parties have come out solidly behind the training and reconstruction role played by the 3,000 German ISAF troops in northern Afghanistan, ahead of a parliamentary decision on renewing their mandate this autumn.

But support for two other German missions to Afghanistan -- elite troops are deployed to the US-led Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and reconnaissance aircraft are assisting combat operations in the south -- is wavering.

Volker Kauder, who heads the parliamentary caucus backing Christian Democratic Chancellor Angela Merkel, says he is prepared to consider sending more troops to buttress the ISAF mission led by NATO.

Pullout is unlikely

"If the government considers it necessary to augment the German contingent, then that is right in my view," said Kauder.

"The [Social Democrats] will certainly hold intense discussions. But I don't expect much opposition," Kauder said.

And as long as the Taliban hasn't been conquered, there is no question of a pullout, he said. "That would lead to a dramatic increase in the danger of terrorism in Europe," he said.

He was speaking after Kurt Beck, chairman of the Social Democrats, who recently paid a visit to Afghanistan and has taken a keen interest in Afghan affairs, said he backed sending more troops.

The aim was to stabilize the Afghan government by creating effective security, Beck said. "And then we have to discuss the question whether we should dispatch more troops and police officers."

Before she left last week on her summer vacation, Chancellor Merkel made her commitment clear.

"Germany's engagement in Afghanistan must continue. We need all three components to be extended," the chancellor said.

Growing concern over missions

Backing his chief, Kauder advocated rolling the three missions into one and pushing through a decision on all three simultaneously in the Bundestag.

But the Social Democrats are not keen on this idea. Party defense spokesman Rainer Arnold says there is growing concern about OEF which mounts counter-terrorism operations against the Taliban in the south and east of Afghanistan.

The mandate for the deployment -- about which little is made public -- should be allowed to lapse when it comes up for renewal in mid-November, he said.

Mandates for the Tornado reconnaisance deployment and the ISAF reconstruction mission come up for renewal in the Bundestag a month earlier, in mid-October.

There is a widespread belief in Germany that ISAF's mainly reconstruction role is being confused in Afghan minds with OEF's combat operations, which have come under severe criticism for the number of civilian casualties caused.

And there is deep concern that the deployment of six Tornado aircraft in April to help detect Taliban positions is turning Germany into a target for terrorists.

Opponents to increasingly speak out

Meanwhile, the German Federal Armed Forces Association, a group that represents the interests of German servicemen and -women, was skeptical of the idea of enhancing the Afghanistan troops. The association's acting chairman, Wolfgang Schmelzer, told the Mittelbayrischen Zeitung newspaper that he was opposed to general troop increases.

"But I do think it makes a lot of sense for the Bundeswehr [German armed forces] to send more German trainers for the Afghan army to the Hindukush," he said.

He also advised against a troop pullout, despite the number of German soldier casualties and the fact that two German engineers were kidnapped on July 18. Germany should only pull out after the Afghan army is turned into a viable fighting force and if the police and legal systems function, he said.

On Monday, NATO chief Jaap de Hoop Scheffer acknowledged concern over civilian casualties in Afghanistan, in an interview with London's Financial Times. He said NATO was considering using smaller bombs.

The kidnapping problem

The July abduction of two German engineers in Afghanistan, along with the murder of one of them, has highlighted concerns about terrorism.

The government, which has come under fire for the way it handles abductions, is reported to be considering taking a tougher line.

But it is no secret that Germany has paid large sums to criminal groups in previous cases, particularly in Iraq, to secure the release of its citizens, as have other European countries.