New York - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday named Peter W Galbraith, a US expert on arms control, as deputy chief of the United Nations mission in Afghanistan.

Galbraith will replace Christopher Alexander of Canada to work in war-torn Afghanistan, where NATO and non-NATO countries maintain 55,000 military personnel and the US has more than 10,000 troops to fight terrorism, the Taliban and al-Qaeda.

The UN mission in Afghanistan, headed by Kai Eide of Norway, plays a crucial role in supporting the government of President Hamid Karzai and coordinating humanitarian assistance in the country.

Galbraith is currently a senior diplomatic fellow at the Centre for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation. He founded the Windham Resources Group that specializes in international negotiations and strategies. He was involved in humanitarian and security work in Iraq, the former Yugoslavia and Timor Leste.