By NNN-KUNA,
London : Afghan government forces have noticeably gained strength with the backing of the powerful allied forces against the Taliban, according the British Secretary of Defense Liam Fox.
The Taliban have been propagating baseless rumors about expected withdrawal of the American forces from the country during the summer, due to heavy losses, said Fox, in a statement addressed to the House of Commons, late on Wednesday.
Fox re-affirmed that the allied forces would hand over full security responsibilities to the local authorities in 2014, in line with an agreement reached with President Hamid Karzai, in Lisbon, last month.
London plans to withdraw its estimated 10,000 troops from Afghanistan in 2011.
The British troops serve as part of an international 150,000-strong military force including 100,000 American soldiers.
The secretary of defense expressed hope that the Afghans reach a political settlement in the second half of next year, indicating that the power of the pro-Western government and the allies would be quite useful in prospected efforts for reaching a conciliation with the Afghan rebels.
The allies have reportedly made some victories in the drive against the Taliban, such as ousting the militants from Kandahar.
However, the militants are said to have re-grown in rural regions.
It has been the bloodiest year since Western forces ousted the Taliban in 2001, with almost 700 foreign troops killed in 2010.