Germany to boost Afghan troop contingent - report

By Sabine Siebold and Kerstin Gehmlich

MUNICH, Germany (Reuters) - Germany is planning to boost troop numbers in Afghanistan and broaden their operation base to deflect U.S. pressure to send German forces to the more dangerous south, Der Spiegel reported on Saturday.

Without citing its sources, the magazine said German Chancellor Angela Merkel planned to increase the number of soldiers Germany can send to Afghanistan by 1,000 to 4,500 and expand their area of operation from the north to the west.

Asked about the report, Defence Minister Franz Josef Jung noted that a parliamentary mandate put an upper limit of German forces at 3,500. This mandate is valid until mid-October.

"I have nothing to say on what concerns a future mandate," Jung told a security conference in the southern city of Munich.

Germany is under increasing pressure from its NATO partners, and Washington in particular, to move troops from the north to help a fierce battle against Taliban insurgents in the south.

Merkel's government has ruled out such a shift, and Jung reiterated German troops in northern Afghanistan had been making a successful contribution to Nato's 43,000-strong mission.

"Every single member has to do its bit. Germany has supported the reconstruction effort in Afghanistan from the outset," Jung said.

Der Spiegel said Merkel was to make the proposal at a NATO summit in April. It said the measure was designed to deflect pressure from Washington to send German forces to the south.