The elections were pushed back from April with the NATO-led military alliance requesting several thousand troops for the polls, Afghanistan's second presidential vote and a crucial test in its quest for democracy.

NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer told reporters that the alliance had requested four battalions of reinforcements from the 42 nations in the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF).

He did not say how many men this would be, but ISAF said previously it asked for "thousands" of troops for the polls.

At a news conference at ISAF headquarters in Kabul, Scheffer said troop commitments for the polls were not yet finalised but he expected them to be announced soon.

Italy and Germany have already committed hundreds of troops and more pledges may be announced at a NATO summit due April 3-4.

Scheffer, at a briefing alongside Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai, told reporters that the elections would be a challenge.

"But we are to meet this challenge because every Afghan citizen should have the right, wherever he is, to go to the polls," he said.

The threat of insurgent attacks against the elections is highest in southern Afghanistan, where several districts are in the hands of the radical Taliban, in government between 1996 and 2001 and now fighting to take back power.

"We will bring extra forces before, during and after the elections to make this possible, so I think it's viable," Scheffer said.

The alliance leads a force of nearly 62,000 troops propping up Karzai's fragile government.

Under the constitution the presidential elections should have been held 30-60 days before Karzai's term ends on May 22. The Independent Election Commission pushed them back, citing security fears and logistical problems.

Karzai has not announced, however, whether he will end his term in May, as set in the constitution. Some sections of the opposition have called for the appointment of a caretaker administration until the election.

The president refused to say at the briefing with Scheffer whether he would stand for re-election, saying he would make an announcement "very soon."

The NATO secretary general arrived in Afghanistan Monday at the head of a delegation of representatives from ISAF nations, on a tour to assess development in the war-scarred nation and "to show long-term commitment," he said.

They arrived after a bloody weekend in which nine ISAF soldiers were killed.

Scheffer also stressed ISAF's commitment to avoiding civilian casualties in its military operations against insurgents.

Asked at the briefing about a push for reconciliation talks with Taliban insurgents, he said it was "up to the Afghan president and government."

He rejected a "sour doomsday scenario" about developments in Afghanistan.

"I do not see in any way the enemies of Afghanistan are on the brink of winning. No way," he said.

In Washington, Britain's foreign secretary David Miliband said that US President Barack Obama's administration is serious about cooperating with its allies on Afghanistan.

"We're very struck that the Obama administration wants to have a discussion of objectives, of strategy, and better resources, and they want to do it in that order," said Miliband, flanked by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

The new US administration has authorized the dispatch of 17,000 extra soldiers to Afghanistan, on top of the 38,000 already deployed.

Miliband's comments came as Afghanistan's intelligence agency said that last month's attacks on government buildings in Kabul were planned and directed from Pakistan, saying seven Afghans have been arrested.

The February 11 attacks, claimed by Taliban insurgents, killed 26 Afghans in one of the most brazen assaults on the capital since the hardline movement was overthrown in the 2001 US-led invasion.

Afghanistan says much of its insurgent violence, including attacks on US and European soldiers, is planned in Pakistan, where Taliban leaders have taken refuge since their overthrow.

Pakistan has rejected US and Afghan accusations that it is not doing enough to crack down on militants, saying more than 1,500 Pakistani troops have been killed at the hands of Islamist extremists since 2002.

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