US soldiers who know a language other than English are to have their bonus payments from the military increased - in some cases by more than threefold.

The US is desperately short of troops who speak the local language in war zones such as Iraq and Afghanistan.

Under the new offer, soldiers can earn as much as $12,000 (£6,400) extra a year for speaking a foreign language.

The US military listed Arabic, Dari, Pashtu and Mandarin Chinese among the languages it needs soldiers to speak.

Soldiers on active duty who qualify for the new bonus can receive up to $1,000 (£538) extra a month, while qualified National Guard soldiers and reservists can earn up to $500 (£269) a month more, the US military said.

The current maximum bonus a US soldier can earn for speaking an extra language is $300 (£161) a month...