OSLO (AFP) - Dramatic drop in support for the NATO-led operations in Afghanistan.

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Nearly half of Norwegians want their country to pull its troops out of Afghanistan, according to a poll published Sunday, indicating a dramatic drop in support for the NATO-led operations there.

The InFact telephone survey of 1,119 people last week showed that 49.4 percent of respondents were in favour of withdrawing Norwegian troops from Afghanistan, while 36 percent said they thought the soldiers should stay.

Fourteen percent were undecided, according to the poll, published in the VG daily.

In a similar InFact survey conducted in June, 45 percent of those questioned said Norway should maintain its troops in Afghanistan, while 35 percent said they should be pulled out.

That poll however was done just after four Norwegian soldiers were killed by a roadside bomb in the northern Afghan province of Faryab, nearly doubling Norway's death toll to nine and accounting for the most Norwegian troop casualties suffered in a single attack since World War II.

Norway has about 500 soldiers in Afghanistan, most of them stationed in the capital Kabul or in the north.

"I think the feelings, with good reason, were strong in June. The June numbers indicated strong support for the soldiers," Defence Minister Grete Faremo told VG on Sunday, explaining why support for the Norwegian presence in Afghanistan appeared to have slipped so dramatically.

She acknowledged meanwhile that Norway, like a number of other countries involved, was facing dwindling support for NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) but stressed the importance of staying the course.

"In my mind, the worst thing to do would be a sudden exit," she said.