BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's conservative candidate to succeed Angela Merkel as chancellor, Armin Laschet, on Saturday called on the foreign ministry to quickly authorise the army to assist in the departure of local helpers from Afghanistan.

       Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, from Merkel's coalition partner, the SPD, said on Friday that Germany would bring forward charter flights originally planned for the end of August to evacuate non-essential embassy staff in Kabul as well as Afghan helpers.

       "The Bundeswehr have to save these people. That's the moral obligation after everything they have done for us," Laschet said at an event in the city of Giessen.

       "We can't watch them any longer being threatened by the Taliban and fundamentalists."

       He said the SPD-led foreign ministry had been too hesitant and should put forward a new parliamentary motion for a Bundeswehr mandate.

       (Reporting by Andreas Rinke; Writing by Ludwig Burger; Editing by Alison Williams)