Federal Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull says Australia and its allies can win the war against the Taliban in Afghanistan.
After his visit to Australian Defence Force troops in Kandahar and Tarin Kowt, Mr Turnbull says Australia is playing a key role in the suppression of insurgents and the reconstruction of the war-torn country.
"The strategy in Afghanistan is winnable," he told Macquarie Radio on Friday.
"What we are seeking to do there, and what we are doing there, is to suppress the insurgents and to create the opportunity, the breathing space if you like, for the Afghan government, which will be having elections shortly, to build up its own army and its own police," Mr Turnbull said.
"This country has been tearing itself about for decades.
"The challenge is to build up its institutions."
Mr Turnbull paid tribute to Australian and coalition armed forces working in Afghanistan and described their work as "so inspiring".
"I think everybody agrees the sooner forces are withdrawn the better, everybody wants to do that. The problem is you can't withdraw them and leave a vacuum," he said.
Mr Turnbull's comments came as Australia was warned to brace for more casualties in Afghanistan.
NATO secretary-general Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said an upcoming surge by allied military forces would mean more deaths.
"We should expect a very heavy fighting season, given the fact that our forces will go where they have never been before," he told ABC Television on Thursday night.
"An intensive fighting season will also mean, unfortunately and dramatically, casualties."
Meanwhile, opposition foreign affairs spokeswoman Julie Bishop has said Australia should send observers to Afghanistan for the upcoming presidential election.
President Hamid Karzai is seeking another term in office when Afghans vote in the August 20 election.
Ms Bishop, who visited Australian troops in the strife-torn country with Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull this week, believes the election process will be a target for insurgents.
"They (insurgents) will (try to) prevent the Afghani people from exercising their right to vote," she told ABC Television.
"Australia should send observers as long as security can be assured."
The United Nations and the European Union are sending observers to monitor the poll.
Australia has committed $8 million to the Afghan independent election commission, and on Wednesday Foreign Minister Stephen Smith announced a further $1 million would help pay for Asian observers to watch over the presidential and local council elections.
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