The
French leader announced the withdrawal during a surprise
visit to meet troops stationed in Sarobi district, northeast
of Kabul, and to be briefed on progress against the Taliban
by a French general.
"It's necessary to end the war," Sarkozy told
journalists at the base. "There was never a question
of keeping troops in Afghanistan indefinitely."
France
has around 4,000 troops deployed in the country, mostly
in Sarobi, Kabul, and in northeastern Kapisa province.
"We will withdraw a quarter of our troops, that's
to say 1,000 men, by the end of 2012," he said. Those
remaining in Afghanistan will be concentrated in Kapisa,
where they have been deployed since 2008.
"The
first group will leave at the end of this year,"
Sarkozy said, without specifying the magnitude of this
"first phase." That
withdrawal will be "in consultation with our allies
and with the Afghan authorities," he said, as "the
situation allows."
The withdrawal announcement came just days after the French
leader told a European Union summit that it will follow
the U.S.' footsteps in pulling out troops either by the
end of this year or early next year. Washington has already
declared that it will withdraw all its 33,000 troops by
the end of next summer.
