A total of 3000 British troops are to be sent to Afghanistan to participate in an international peacekeeping force, the Telegraph reports today.

The government will officially announce the mission tomorrow, in order to coincide with a visit by US secretary of state Colin Powell.

Parliament will be asked to endorse the deployment of British troops in a UN peacekeeping force, as the UK signals its willingness to play a leading role in the reconstruction of Afghanistan.

Geoff Hoon yesterday said that a request from the UN will be taken "very seriously" by the UK, which would play a leading role in a peacekeeping mission." I see every advantage in one country providing the main elements of the headquarters of this operation, something that the UK has done very well in the past," he said.

US vice president Dick Cheney has indicated that the US will play a more limited role in the international force. "We might provide some light support for it", he said.