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WASHINGTON, Aug 9 (Reuters) - The conflict in Afghanistan has not reached a crisis point despite gains by Taliban insurgents, U.S. national security adviser Jim Jones said on Sunday.

"I don't think we're at a crisis level where there is any move by the Taliban to overthrow the government," Jones said on CBS' "Face the Nation."

But he said Washington would not rule out an additional increase in U.S. troop levels to secure the country.

Violence has increased in Afghanistan in the last weeks of campaigning for an Aug. 20 presidential election that militants vowed to disrupt.

The United States is sending 21,000 extra troops to Afghanistan in a bid to counter the Taliban, who now control a large swath of territory, and it has named a new commander to lead the NATO-backed effort.

The American troops will reinforce roughly 70,000 international troops already in Afghanistan. NATO leaders also have agreed to boost troop levels by 3,000 before the vote.

The Taliban have regrouped since being driven from power by U.S.-led forces for harboring al Qaeda leaders responsible for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.

Susan Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said Washington expected the election would proceed as scheduled.

"The Afghan people are ready and waiting, and our aim is to ensure that there's a level playing field, that the Afghan people have an opportunity to freely choose their next leader in security," she told CNN's "State of the Union."

The Taliban insurgency has prompted concerns of a wider rebellion that could engulf Afghanistan and further destabilize Pakistan, its neighbor and nuclear power. (Additional reporting by Susan Cornwell; Writing by Paul Simao; Editing by Doina Chiacu)

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