KUNDUZ CITY (PAN): Germany announced on Sunday 800 of its troops would stay in Afghanistan after 2014 when their military equipment and other facilities would be handed over to Afghan forces.
At a press conference, German commander in Kunduz Col. von Rechenberg said they would withdraw troops from the province by the end of 2013 and gradually from Afghanistan by the end of 2014.
They would leave behind 800 troops to train and advise Afghan security personnel beyond 2014, when the NATO-led combat mission would end, he added.
After the pullout of German troops, their military facilities and equipment would be handed over to the Afghan National Army (ANA), Civil Order Police and other government departments, the official explained.
Germany would not leave Afghanistan alone after 2014 and continue with its assistances to the war-torn country in the area of infrastructure development, he promised.
Germany is one of the major donors to Afghanistan and has nearly 4500 troops in the country. Since 2001, more than 50 German soldiers have been killed in different parts of the country.
myn/mud
