(BRUSSELS) - The European Union agreed Monday to double the size of its police mission in Afghanistan to some 400 personnel, the EU's Slovenian presidency said.

EU foreign and defence ministers, meeting in Brussels, "decided the EU should double the number of participants in the EUPOL mission in Afghanistan," the EU presidency said in a statement.

The police mission had initially been due to rise to around 200 police, law enforcement and justice experts.

"The consolidation of the rule of law, which is particularly weak in the areas where safety is not guaranteed, is of crucial importance for consolidating the democratic process in Afghanistan," the EU presidency said.

The EUPOL mission's aim is to help build the Afghan police force, as well as mentor and advise interior ministry officials.

But the operation has come in for criticism, notably from NATO and the United States.

In September, NATO's civilian representative to Afghanistan criticised the lack of EU efforts, stressing that Afghan police remained widely corrupt and inefficient, aiding drug-trafficking.

Later that month, US ambassador to NATO Victoria Nuland told a German newspaper that some 5,000 instructors would be needed to help train Afghan police, a far higher number than the EU had planned for.

Germany, which is leading the police efforts, has said it would be prepared to virtually double he number of its police officers in Afghanistan if other European nations do the same.

German Defence Minister Franz Josef Jung confirmed Monday that the number of German police officers would grow from around 60 now to more than 100.

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