French troops handed over one of their bases near Kabul to Afghan soldiers on Tuesday as part of the transition to Afghan control over security and the pullout of 2,000 French combat soldiers by year's end.

French President Francois Hollande has pledged that the country's 2,000 combat troops in Afghanistan will return home by the end of the year, but that about 1,400 French soldiers will stay to help with training and logistics.

Hollande has said that, after more than a decade in Afghanistan, French combat troops had carried out their mission and it was time for them to leave in an early withdrawal coordinated with the United States and other allies. That decision put France on a fast-track exit timetable that sparked consternation among some members of the U.S.-led NATO military coalition, which is not ending its combat mission until the end of 2014.

The coalition has started handing over security control to Afghan army and police in areas home to 75 percent of the population, with a goal of putting them in the lead for all the country by mid-2013.