Nicolas Sarkozy meets troops in Afghanistan

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Nicolas Sarkozy meets troops in Afghanistan

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French President Nicolas Sarkozy makes surprise visit to French troops in Afghanistan.

12 July,2011 12:05 pm

French President Nicolas Sarkozy said during a visit to Afghanistan that France would pull out 1,000 troops from its mission there by the end of 2012, as it speeds up its withdrawal with the United States.Sarkozy -- on an unannounced five-hour visit to meet Afghan President Hamid Karzai and General David Petraeus and drop in on French troops in the region of Surobi -- said Frances remaining soldiers would be based in Kapisa province.France has some 4,000 soldiers in Afghanistan.Sarkozys visit followed a trip by US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta at the weekend and comes after the United States and France said in June that they would pull soldiers out earlier than expected from the nearly decade-old military campaign against Taliban insurgents.The early pullout could give Sarkozy a boost ahead of the April 2012 presidential election, where he faces a tough battle from the leftwing opposition to win a second term.