Call halt: UK troops delayed

Northern Alliance objections to the presence of foreign troops in Afghanistan has meant plans to deploy thousands more British troops in the country have been put on hold.

Around 4000 soldiers have been on 48 hour stand-by and approximately half had been expected to fly out to Afghanistan on Monday, where British and American soldiers have already secured the Bagram airfield north of Kabul.

Defence secretary Geoff Hoon had initially described their role as a "stabilisation mission", but this description of their mission and a lack of prior consultation over the arrival of the troops angered senior Alliance members. Over the weekend a Northern Alliance intelligence chief called for all but 15 of the soldiers to leave.

Another Alliance leader, general Bismullah Khan, also said his forces could tackle terrorism without outside intervention. "We do not need foreign troops in Afghanistan," he said.

But the British government has been playing down suggestions of a rift with its "allies". Hoon said yesterday that alliance leaders had been "very positive" about the British deployment while Foreign Office minister Ben Bradshaw claimed they had been welcomed by the Alliance members "who mattered".

Having previously ignored calls by Tony Blair and president Bush not to enter Kabul, the Northern Alliance had initially seemed less inclined to go along with the wishes of Western governments following its rout of Taliban forces. However, on Sunday the Alliance's foreign minister, Abdullah Abdullah, indicated that the row over the initial troop deployment had been resolved.

"The presence of British troops in Bagram at this stage is based on an agreement between us and the British government, and the aim of deploying them there is to provide security for humanitarian aid," he told a press conference.

The deployment of further troops will be at the top of the agenda for Stephen Evans, the UK's envoy to Afghanistan, who is due to fly to Kabul on Monday.