London (PTI): The British defence secretary has compared the Taliban and al-Qaeda to the Nazis, saying that the "fanatics" are challenging the way of life in a manner similar to Adolf Hitler's paratroopers.

Terming the military campaign in Afghanistan as a "vital national security mission", John Hutton said it is a like the war to defeat Hitler.

"It is a struggle against fanatics that may not challenge our borders but challenges our way of life in the same way the Nazis did," Hutton told The Times newspaper in an interview today.

However, he added that forces in Afghanistan were standing in defence of British values like they did during World War II, the British daily said.

The troops are guarding mainly the southern province, which has witnessed some of the worst Taliban attacks.

Hutton's comments have shown Britains's wish to add more troops in Afghanistan where a war against Taliban has already led to the death of 134 British soldiers, The Times said.

It also quoted the defence minister as saying, "We will stay there as long as it is necessary to secure all of our objectives -- it's going to be years."

"The key thing now is not that the Taliban or al-Qaeda can defeat us in Afghanistan, their tactic is to outlast us. Thats what weve got to deal with. Thats the nature of this counter-insurgency operation . . .

"It doesnt lend itself to instantaneous results. This is a very complex, challenging environment for us to be operating in," the minister told the newspaper.