'We need more troops to beat the Taliban'

The Commander of Nato forces in Afghanistan today warned that more troops and resources were needed to beat the Taliban.

In a blunt message to politicians, General David Richards said Nato member states needed to put "more military effort" into the country.

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His warning came as new figures revealed that British military spending as a percentage of GDP had slumped to its lowest level since the Thirties and now lagged behind that of Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey.

General Richards said the Taliban could be defeated within a year if he had the additional troops and money.

Successful efforts to thwart the insurgents' winter campaign had been achieved "against the odds" and because of the "exceptionally skilled and brave fighting" of the Nato forces, he said.

"I am concerned that Nato nations will assume the same level of risk in 2007 believing they can get away with it.

"They might, but it's a dangerous assumption to believe the same ingredients will exist this year as they did last," he told the Guardian.

"And anyway, a stabilised situation is not a good enough aim.

"We should and can win in Afghanistan but we need to put more military effort into the country.

"We must apply ourselves more energetically for one more year in order to win," he said.

The intervention by General Richards, who commands 31,000 troops in the country, follows a row within the Nato alliance over the deployment of more troops.

Britain and America believe that countries such as Germany, France and Germany are dragging their feet over send reinforcements.

The general said the military were "hugely frustrated" and he went on to criticise the Department for International Development, for "not living up to expectations". "I will not conceal our frustration with the speed of DfID's delivery on the ground and an occasional reluctance to join with us as necessary planning partners," he said.

His comments came as the Conservative Party claimed that defence spending as a percentage of GDP had fallen to 2.5 per cent - the lowest level in seven decades, while troop numbers were 5,170 below the total strength of 180,690.