Nicolas Sarkozy - France Will Withdraw 1,000 Troops From Afghanistan In Late 2012

France will pull a quarter of its troops from Afghanistan by the end of next year.

President Nicolas Sarkozy has made the declaration during an unannounced flying visit to the country.

Currently, about 4,000 French soldiers in Afghanistan. The remaining troops will be located in the province of Kapisa. French soldiers were involved in military operations against Taliban rebels since 2001.

Sarkozy was forced to spend only five hours, and there was a meeting with Afghan Leaders Hamid Karzai and Gen. David Petraeus.