Britain and U.S. in Afghan troop call

By Sue Pleming

KABUL (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Foreign Secretary David Miliband met the Afghan president and NATO commanders in Afghanistan on Thursday, in a joint visit to press reluctant allies to share the combat burden.

More than six years after U.S.-led and Afghan forces toppled the Taliban, the Islamist militia's resurgence and spiralling violence has led Washington to call on its allies to send more troops to Afghanistan, a country bigger in size and population than Iraq, but with only a third the number of foreign soldiers.

The Taliban fought back strongly last year. More than 6,000 people died in fighting in 2007, nearly 2,000 of them civilians.

Suicide and roadside bombings now occur on an almost daily basis targeting foreign and Afghan forces. Until 2005, suicide bombings were rare in Afghanistan.

"Frankly, I hope there will be more troop contributions and there needs to be more Afghan forces," Rice told reporters.

Rice, speaking against the backdrop of a NATO defence ministers' meeting in Lithuania, said alliance members needed to "come together to give enough military power to do what needs to be done on the front end of the counter-insurgency effort".

Rice and Miliband travelled to a sprawling base in the southern city of Kandahar, the birthplace of the Taliban and the main city in Afghanistan's most volatile region.

Rice and Miliband met NATO commanders on the frontline of the fight against the Taliban and afterwards addressed troops. Rice gave a rousing speech praising soldiers' bravery and sacrifice.