Germany wants to increase the number of its soldiers in Afghanistan by around a third, a Defence Ministry spokesman said on Saturday. The Bundestag, or lower house of parliament, would be asked to approve a government request to extend the soldiers' mandate beyond October 13 and make as many as 3,000 soldiers available, up from the current 2,200, the spokesman said.
"An upper limit of 3,000 is planned to enable the force to react more effectively to security developments and to increase flexibility when rotating troops," he added.
The spokesman said the troops would continue to provide logistical support to the Afghan government in disrupting the drugs industry but would not be taking an active role in destroying stocks of narcotics.