The Afghan city where Australian forces were based for more than a decade is on the verge of again falling to the Taliban, after days of deadly strikes by insurgents.

Dozens of Taliban fighters and several policeman are believed to have been killed during coordinated attacks on checkpoints near Tarin Kot, the capital of Afghanistan's Uruzgan province.

"[The militants] are in some areas as close as one kilometre and in some, five kilometres to the main city," Uruzgan security chief Abdul Qawi was quoted as saying by Afghan media.

In an online post, the Taliban claimed to have overrun 15 Government outposts, including a "strategic military base" in Uruzgan.

"All the surrounding areas of the capital are under tight siege and attacks of mujahideen," the group said.

Australia handed over control of the Tarin Kot military base to the Afghan Government in December 2013.

Defence officials in Canberra are now closely monitoring developments in the Uruzgan capital.

In February, Defence Force Air Chief Marshal Mark Binskin said insurgents were getting the upper hand in many districts around the former Australian military base in Tarin Kot.

"Insurgents have increased their freedom of movement and generally contain ANDSF (Afghan National Defence and Security Forces) units to their bases and their checkpoints," he told a Senate Estimates hearing.

Australian forces completed their withdrawal from Uruzgan province at the end of 2013, after a 12-year mission which saw 41 Defence Force personnel killed and 261 seriously wounded.