Canadian Brig. Gen: NATO Troops Hampered

Norwegian soldiers, part of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), praparing for loading the Afghan Ministry of public health's humanitarian aids into a German ISAF helicopter for survivors of the flood at the Herat's Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) air field, southwest of Kabul, Afghanistan on Saturday, Nov. 18, 2006. Medical relief teams traveling by donkey arrived Saturday in a mountainous province of western Afghanistan, where flash floods killed at least 53 people, including six children, and left dozens missing, officials said. (AP Photo/Musadeq Sadeq, Pool) (Musadeq Sadeq - AP)

KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan -- The NATO-led force in Afghanistan would be more effective if member countries lifted restrictions that prevent their troops from fighting insurgents in the country's restive south, a senior Canadian officer said Saturday.

Many of the 37 troop-contributing nations serving with the 31,000-strong force have refused to join the fight against Taliban and other insurgents in the south, leaving the task to Canadian, American, British and Dutch soldiers.

The French, German and Italian forces patrol relatively quiet sectors in the north under self-imposed limitations, known in NATO as "caveats," that keep them out of combat operations.

Brig. Gen. Tim Grant, in charge of Canadian forces in Afghanistan, said that if the commander of the NATO-led force "had more flexibility in the deployment and the use of all the troops here I think it would be better for everyone."

"The issue is not necessarily having more troops stationed here on a permanent basis," Grant told The Associated Press in an interview at this sprawling southern military base. "But if there are situations ... when it is important to have different capacities, different capabilities on the ground, that is when (the NATO) commander needs to be able to move troops."

Speaking Friday in Quebec City, NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer also urged lawmakers from the alliance's member nations to lean on their governments to remove troop restrictions. He said national caveats are understandable, but ultimately divisive.

At least 289 members of the U.S. military have died in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan as a result of the U.S. invasion in late 2001 to oust the Taliban regime for hosting Osama bin Laden.

At least 42 Canadians have been killed in the war, including 34 soldiers this year alone. Britain has lost at least 40 soldiers, while the Netherlands has had four deaths.

Meanwhile, Afghan President Hamid Karzai said Saturday that the task of reconstructing his country remained largely unfinished, urging developed countries and international aid agencies to renew their commitment of support.

"To those of our partners who may be pondering their continued involvement in Afghanistan, I say the job is not over and the stakes are still very high," Karzai told leaders from some 19 countries gathered in New Delhi for a conference on Afghanistan.

The participants included Afghanistan's neighbors _ Pakistan, Iran and China _ and members of the G-8 group of industrialized nations.

"I hope the conference will bring to Afghanistan what we so badly need: assistance, investment and lasting stability," Karzai said.