BAGHDAD - US Defence Secretary Robert Gates is to review allegations of misconduct in Afghanistan by the security company formerly known as Blackwater.

The review comes a day after a leading Democrat said the Pentagon should consider barring it from applying for a contract to train Afghan police.

The Pentagon said it could not bar the company from applying for the billion-dollar police training contract.

A spokesman for company, now called Xe, said it welcomed the review.

Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell said of Mr Gates' response: "He is looking into it and he takes it seriously. He shares [Mr Levin's] concerns."

The Blackwater company began its work protecting US government personnel in Iraq following the invasion in 2003.

Anti-American sentiment in Iraq was stoked in December after a US judge threw out manslaughter charges against five Blackwater guards over the 2007 killing of 17 Iraqis in Baghdad.

The activities of foreign security firms in Iraq have been curbed since then.

The lawsuits sought compensation for deaths and injuries incurred in incidents including the 2007 killings.