Italy plans to send more troops in Afghanistan next year, raising their number from 2,270 to 2,800, Defence Minister Ignazio La Russa told the Senate's Defence and Foreign Committees on Wednesday.
The additional soldiers will reinforce Italian troops deployed in the turbulent western province of Farah, said La Russa.
The minister stressed, however, that at the moment there were no ''concrete'' plans to redeploy Italian servicemen serving in other international hot-spots to Afghanistan.
He confirmed that US Defence Secretary Bob Gates had asked him to increase the Italian contingent during a recent meeting in Washington.
''I told him that we were aware of the need to reinforce the international contingent (NATO's International Security Assistance Force - ISAF) but that Italy is one of the countries that most contributes''.
''What we could instead consider is reviewing the deployment of our men in their current destinations,'' he said, specifically referring to the Italian contingent in Bosnia.
''It's possible to think of moving them from one military theatre to another, but at present this is not a concrete possibility''.
Last month, Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said a number of European states were not pulling their weight in the area, urging the bloc to develop ''a single European strategy''.
''This is particularly the case given the new US administration will be asking for a greater commitment from Europe, focusing more on the political aspects and not just the issue of troops,'' he said.
US President-elect Barack Obama has repeatedly stressed the importance of shifting the focus from Iraq to Afghanistan, and called for greater assistance from Europe during a July speech in Berlin.
During a visit to Rome on Tuesday, the head of US Central Command, General David Petraeus told a news conference that the number of American troops in Afghanistan should be doubled from the current 30,000.
Referring to an increase in allies' troop deployment, the general said a decision on ''additional contributions'' needed to be made by NATO.
Petraeus also said he had high regard for Italian soldiers in Afghanistan, comparing crack Carabinieri sent to train local police to US basketball legend Michael Jordan.
''Afghan troops being trained by your Carabinieri must feel like someone playing basketball with Michael Jordan''.
Compared to police forces from other countries, your Carabinieri are way up on a pedestal...they're on another plane,'' he said.
