France may send "few hundred" troops to Afghanistan

By Francois Murphy

PARIS (Reuters) - France might send a few hundred extra troops to Afghanistan, Prime Minister Francois Fillon said on Tuesday, clashing with the opposition Socialists who accused the government of pandering to the United States.

President Nicolas Sarkozy said last week France would boost its military presence if NATO allies accepted certain proposals at a summit in Bucharest this week, such as working on a broader strategy for Afghanistan, which they are expected to do.

France had been expected to send an extra 1,000 troops in addition to its 1,500 soldiers already serving in the 47,000-strong NATO force there, but Fillon appeared to indicate the size of the reinforcement could be smaller.

"Our armed forces in Afghanistan may invest more in the command structures, particularly in Kabul, in training the Afghan army and in the units in the Afghan provinces," he told a parliamentary debate on the Afghan operation.

"The numbers could be something like a few hundred extra soldiers," Fillon said.

But a senior diplomat told reporters Sarkozy was unlikely to announce a precise number of troops at this week's NATO summit.

"No precise figure exists because it will be the result of negotiations between military officials," the diplomat said on condition of anonymity.

NATO members such as the United States, Britain and Canada have urged allies to send more troops to help battle a resurgent Taliban, but the Socialists said Sarkozy was putting U.S. interests before France's.