"France says European defence neglect hurting Afghanistan"

Indeed. Note the resolute tone (ever here a Conservative minister speak like that?) and final para (via GAP):

CANBERRA (AFP) — French Defence Minister Herve Morin on Wednesday said years of under-investment in defence by European countries was to blame for a critical shortage of international forces in Afghanistan.

Morin warned during a visit to Australia that the world could not afford to lose the increasingly brutal conflict in Afghanistan and urged nations involved to stay the course to avoid a greater threat of terror.

"Europe, apart from France and Britain, decided a long time ago to disarm. They have not provided enough money for their defence and their security," he told reporters after talks with Australian Defence Minister Joel Fitzgibbon.

"Most European countries have decided to leave their defence up to NATO," he said when asked whether he agreed with Australia's view that some nations in the continent were not pulling their weight in the escalating Afghan conflict.

"This weakness of Europe is also evident in Afghanistan," he said.

Morin, who visited Afghanistan last week after the deaths of 10 French soldiers, invited Fitzgibbon to accompany him and German Defence Minister Franz Josef Jung there in early December.

The forces of the three nations cover much of the mountainous central Asian nation, with Australian soldiers deployed to the south, German troops in the north and French soldiers in central and eastern provinces.

"This will send a sign to the international community that our involvement is necessary and that we need a multi-faceted approach to the Afghanistan problem," he said.

Fitzgibbon, who last week criticised the pace of progress in the war, welcomed the invitation, saying it sent the message that the Afghan conflict was a global military engagement.

Australia has the heaviest non-NATO presence in Afghanistan, with 1,000 troops, while France has 3,000 troops serving with the 70,000-strong international force fighting the revived Taliban.

Morin said there was "not the thickness of a cigarette paper between the positions of Paris and Canberra over Afghanistan," while Fitzgibbon said the country was at the heart of the security of France and Australia.

The French minister warned that a growing range of operational restrictions placed on NATO troops in Afghanistan from different member nations was hindering their work.

He said international forces had to win the war in order to ward off the threat of global terror being fostered in Afghanistan.

"We have no choice except to be present in Afghanistan," he said, saying that the international military effort was critical to clearing the way for Afghan civil society to take control of the country.

"We cannot lose (the conflict). We have no right to lose the conflict.

"Of course, the decision by certain countries to withdraw their troops would send a very bad signal [emphasis added, i.e. The Netherlands and Canada]," he added.

And note the different German and French (end of this post) approach to pirates.

Update: The UK defence secretary concurs; some useful Anglo/French collusion I would think:

Nato must transform to beat Taliban - Browne