German troops will stay in Afghanistan

BERLIN, May 10 (UPI) -- German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday she plans to keep German troops in Afghanistan until the official NATO pull out date at the end of 2014.

Merkel told German parliament: "The principle which applies for the German government is: we entered together, we will leave together."

Addressing concerns regarding Afghan security forces' ability to maintain security after troop withdrawal, Merkel said, "handing over responsibility is progressing as we planned."

French President-elect Francois Hollande has pledged to bring withdraw French troops by the end of this year, Radio France Internationale reported, while outgoing President Nicolas Sarkozy had pledged to do so in 2013.