WASHINGTON : US President Barack Obama huddled with his war council for the fifth time, debating whether to send thousands more troops to Afghanistan to quell a growing conflict.

Obama is to unveil a new strategy within weeks to contain an insurgency violence fueled by Al-Qaeda militants and the Taliban, which is on an upswing eight years after being ousted from power.

During Wednesday's three hour meeting Obama was briefed by key aides on efforts to stregthen the civilian mission in Afghanistan and train Afghan security forces, with the vexed question of ressources permiating the debate, the White House said.

The discussion brought Obama together Vice President Joe Biden, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton via videoconference from Russia.

It came after a grim assessment of the war by General Stanley McChrystal, the top NATO and US commander in Afghanistan, who has reportedly asked for up to 40,000 more troops to fight the insurgency.

McChrystal was also present for the discussion, as was Admiral Michael Mullen, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair and CIA chief Leon Panetta.

Obama has said the top goal of any new policy would be consistent with current US aims -- rooting out Al-Qaeda and its "extremist allies."

"We are going through a very deliberative process," Obama said Tuesday after talks with Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero.

"I won't provide you a preview of what I am seeing or hearing," he added, saying only: "I would expect that we will have a completion of this current process in the coming weeks."

Britain on Wednesday addressed some concerns about resources, announcing it would send an extra 500 soldiers to Afghanistan.

But Prime Minister Gordon Brown also urged NATO allies to do their "fair share" in the increasingly deadly and unpopular war. Related article: Britain to send more troops

And he pressed Kabul to provide more troops and get tough on corruption.

Meanwhile, the pace of the closed-door talks has stepped up in Washington, with Obama due to meet again with his national security advisors next week.

The NATO-led mission to Afghanistan included around 34,000 US personel when Obama took office in January. The force is expected to rise to 68,000 by the end of the year.

But public opinion is souring towards the war in both the United States and Britain.

A Populus opinion poll for the Times newspaper in London on Wednesday showed that public calls to end Britain's engagement have risen sharply as casualties mount, with 36 percent of voters now believing all British forces should be withdrawn.

The debate has been clouded by recent Afghan elections, which were marred by allegations of widespread fraud.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs on Wednesday said it would "work with whatever government there is" but added having a "strong credible partner is extremely important."

Although Obama has remained tight-lipped about his deliberations, the White House has made it clear that a total withdrawal from Afghanistan is not an option.

The White House appears to distinguish between Al-Qaeda and the lesser threat they say is posed to US security by the Taliban, fueling suspicion Obama is leaning away from sending tens of thousands more troops to Afghanistan to escalate the counter-insurgency.

That is an approach favored by Biden, while Clinton and Gates are reported to have a wider vision of the conflict including its civilian and diplomatic consequences.

Either way, Obama is likely to face domestic opposition to his decisison.

Democratic House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, one of Obama's top allies in Congress on Wednesday said he was not ready to support sending more troops to Afghanistan, citing "reservations" about the government in Kabul.

On the Republican side, Senator John McCain, who was defeated by Obama in last year's White House race, has warned a failure to dispatch more US troops to Afghanistan would be "an error of historic proportions.

"I think the great danger now is not an American pullout," McCain told CNN television on Sunday. "I think the great danger now is a half-measure... trying to please all ends of the political spectrum."

More than 100,000 foreign soldiers under NATO and US command are in Afghanistan as the war goes into its ninth year, with casualties so far in 2009 at 409, according to icasualties.org.

- AFP/vm