US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates has called on NATO allies and other nations with troops in Afghanistan not to make what he called ill-timed, precipitous, or uncoordinated withdrawals after the United States begins its gradual withdrawal from the country in July. He met with representatives of the 47 other contributing nations and the Afghan defense minister on Friday. Gates said he recognizes that some European nations have lost many troops in Afghanistan, and some governments are under political pressure to withdraw their troops. He asked them to resist the any such pressure.