France honors 4 troops killed by Afghan soldier (AP)

PARIS ? President Nicolas Sarkozy is traveling to southeastern France for a ceremony honoring four French troops shot dead by an Afghan soldier.

Sarkozy ordered a halt to French training programs for the Afghan military and threatened to withdraw French forces earlier than first planned after Friday's killings in eastern Afghanistan.

Top French officials in recent days have sought to dispel concerns abroad about a possible crack in the NATO-led alliance in Afghanistan and a hasty exit by France. Polls show the war is unpopular with the French public.

Prime Minister Francois Fillon told parliament Tuesday that France is keeping to plans to withdraw 600 troops this year ? in line with its previous schedule pegged in part to a gradual U.S.-led withdrawal by 2014.

France currently has about 3,600 troops in Afghanistan.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120125/ap_on_re_eu/eu_france_afghanistan

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