Clinton asks Netherlands to stay on in Afghanistan

Washington would welcome a Dutch decision to stay on in Afghanistan, US secretary of state Hillary Clinton told RTL4 tv.

A longer Dutch presence in Afghanistan would be "very welcome", US secretary of state Hillary Clinton said in an interview with RTL4 television on Tuesday.

The Netherlands' military mission in Afghanistan consists of 1,700 troops serving in the southern province of Uruzgan. The mission was originally planned to end in August 2008 but has been extended to the end of 2010. The Dutch government has assured parliament that the current mission will end in 2010. But it has left open the possibility of the Netherlands maintaining some military presence in Afghanistan.

Clinton said she would be grateful if the Dutch government changed its mind about staying on in Afghanistan.

She also said the US was mulling the possibility of joining the International Criminal Court; the Bush administration was fiercely opposed to the Hague-based tribunal. "We are currently looking at the conditions of membership", Clinton said. "But we also want our soldiers all over the world to be able to carry out their missions without risk."

Clinton said that the US has no plans to intervene militarily in Pakistan, even if Osama Bin Laden was found there. "We will leave it to the Pakistan government; we respect Pakistani sovereignty," Clinton said.