Sarkozy: France to pull 1,000 Afghanistan troops by end-2012

French President Nicolas Sarkozy said during a visit to Afghanistan on Tuesday that France will 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 France's remaining soldiers would be based in Kapisa province. (Reuters)