KABUL (AFP) - Afghanistans President Hamid Karzai on Sunday defended his nominees for ministerial posts and promised that all members of his cabinet will be accountable as he fights to eradicate corruption. Karzai is facing extreme pressure from his Western backers to tackle graft, which observers say fuels a Taliban-led insurgency and is a major reason for the governments unpopularity. Amid threats from backers, including the United States and NATO allies with more than 100,000 troops deployed to fight the insurgency, Karzai used the cabinet list as evidence of his commitment to fighting corruption. The 23 out of a total of 25 ministerial nominees who presented themselves to parliament on Saturday face an arduous approval process. Of the new cabinet we presented to the parliament, almost 50 percent of them are new, he told a press conference with visiting Belgian Prime Minister Yves Leterme. I can say with confidence that the new ministers, as well as those from the last cabinet, will be accountable for anything relating to corruption, he said, adding: I will be accountable. The nominees are individuals who can work, serve the people and achieve goals we have for the people of Afghanistan, Karzai said. The new government was representative of all ethnic groups in the country, he said. We have tried to ensure the cabinet is a mirror of Afghanistans people, a cabinet that all Afghan people can see themselves in, he said. The cabinet list includes many old faces who have won approval from the international community, two warlords, some former ministers making a return to public office, and a few new faces. Meanwhile, President Hamid Karzai said Sunday that his war-torn country would benefit if the Netherlands maintained its military and civilian presence in Afghanistan, rather than withdrawing as planned. About 2,000 Dutch troops are deployed in the province of Uruzgan, one of the most insurgency-hit regions in southern Afghanistan. The deployment is set to end next year. The decision of the Dutch parliament and government about ending the duration of the Netherlands troops in Afghanistan is a sovereign decision, Karzai told reporters. Karzai was speaking at a press conference with Prime Minister Yves Leterme of Belgium, which has 500 troops in Afghanistan.