BRUSSELS, Belgium — Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld told NATO allies on Monday that the United States would welcome more help in Iraq. Other U.S. officials said some European defense ministers suggested that NATO might assume command of a multinational division now led by Poland.
After meetings with his counterparts in the alliance, Rumsfeld described the situation in Iraq as a contradiction: deadly violence daily against U.S. and coalition forces even as they make important moves toward restoring normalcy and establishing democracy.
"There are a limited number of people who are determined to kill innocent men, women and children who are connected to the coalition or who are coalition participants or who are innocent Iraqis," Rumsfeld said.
Nonetheless, he said progress is being made in rounding up those responsible for the violence. Marine Gen. Peter Pace, who appeared with Rumsfeld at a news conference at NATO headquarters and had visited Iraq last week, said the guerrillas "are afraid their way of thuggery" is losing.
Lord Robertson, presiding over his final NATO ministerial meetings this week before retiring as the alliance's top diplomat, said in remarks opening Monday's session that America's allies "must have the political will to deploy and use (their) forces in much larger numbers than at present." He mentioned not only Afghanistan and Iraq but the broader war against terror.
Robertson also said the time was approaching for NATO to end its peacekeeping mission in Bosnia, eight years after it began. The allies agreed to reduce the number of peacekeepers there from 12,500 to 7,000 next year, with the intention of handing the entire operation to the European Union.
Rumsfeld said it was "open to discussion" what role the United States might play in Bosnia with the Europeans in charge.
In a sign of tangible progress toward transforming NATO from an organization geared toward Cold War-era conflicts to one capable to defending its member countries from 21st century threats, Robertson announced formation of a multinational battalion of soldiers, based in the Czech Republic, that could respond to a military crisis involving the use of chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear weapons.
The battalion comprises about 500 soldiers from 13 NATO countries, the first of its kind. It will be presented officially Wednesday at its Czech headquarters.
"This is a new and innovative capability aiming to deal with a threat that exists and a threat that we have to cope with," Robertson told reporters as Belgian soldiers displayed protective masks and suits, decontamination gear and laboratory tools that the battalion would send into the field to detect and analyze harmful agents and, if necessary, help contaminated victims.
Rumsfeld said that while he encouraged the allies to take a bigger role in Iraq, whether to do so was their decision. Eighteen of 26 NATO nations — include the seven due to become full members next spring — already have troops in Iraq, he said.
Robertson said the NATO defense ministers decided "in principle" to expand their work in Afghanistan beyond Kabul, the capital, where a NATO security force has been keeping the peace. NATO intends to set up as many as five "provincial reconstruction teams" around Afghanistan, like units already run by U.S. forces. On Monday U.S. and Afghan officials inaugurated one such military-civilian team to carry out relief projects in Herat, a city in far western Afghanistan.
Eventually, Rumsfeld said, NATO could go a step further and "take over military operations" in Afghanistan. Currently the United States has about 10,000 troops there to assist in the country's reconstruction and to hunt down remnants of the former ruling Taliban militia and al-Qaida network fighters.
Dominique Struye de Swielande, the Belgian defense minister, told reporters his government was willing to consider carefully the idea of NATO assuming command in Afghanistan.
Rumsfeld had said Sunday that while the United States favors having NATO take over in Afghanistan, the Bush administration was not ready to propose that officially.
He said the administration also would welcome a bigger NATO role in Iraq. Currently the alliance is supporting Poland's work as leader of the multinational division operating in south-central Iraq.
Robertson seemed to hint that more could be done soon, perhaps in the new year.