France

France’s plans for an early withdrawal from Afghanistan drew criticism from Kabul on Saturday, with experts and lawmakers accusing French President Nicolas Sarkozy of putting politics ahead of Afghans' safety.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Wednesday honoured the four French troops who were shot dead last week by a man wearing an Afghan army uniform. Their deaths have fuelled speculation that France may seek to accelerate its Afghan withdrawal.

Foreign Minister Alain Juppé (second from right) said Tuesday that France would not complete its withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2012 despite the killing of four French soldiers by a member of the Afghan army last week.

NATO officials have tended to downplay "insider threat" - or cases of Afghan soldiers attacking their coalition partners. But that could change with French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s harsh response to Friday's killing of four French troops.

French Defence Minister Gérard Longuet arrived in Kabul for high-level talks on Saturday as France suspended its mission in Afghanistan and weighed an early withdrawal after French troops were killed by an Afghan soldier.

France began a planned troop withdrawal from Afghanistan Wednesday as 200 soldiers prepare to head home, with another 200 expected back in France by Christmas. An estimated 4,000 French troops serve in the NATO-led force in Afghanistan.

A French soldier was shot dead by an insurgent during an operation in the northeast Kapisa province, France’s Ministry of Defence said Sunday, the 74th French military fatality since the start of the NATO-led campaign in 2001.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has led a national tribute to the seven French soldiers killed in Afghanistan last week at a military and religious ceremony in Paris.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy called a meeting on Friday to discuss new security measures for troops in Afghanistan after five French soldiers were killed there on Wednesday. Sarkozy plans a complete French withdrawal from Afghanistan by 2014.

The traditional military parade and flag waving for Bastille Day in France has been overshadowed by the death of six French soldiers in Afghanistan, the deadliest attacks on French troops in the country since 2008.