President Barack Obama has said that the US will reduce its troops to 9,800 in Afghanistan by the end of this year before a complete withdrawal takes place by the end of 2016.

Obama said the US will reduce its military presence by half by the end of next year and bring it further down to a "normal embassy presence" by the end of 2016, adding the decision is subject to signing of a bilateral security agreement with Afghanistan.

"At the beginning of 2015, we will have approximately 9,800 US service members in different parts of the country, together with our NATO allies and other partners," Obama said. "By the end of 2015, we will have reduced that presence by roughly half. One year later, our military will draw down to a normal embassy presence in Kabul, with a security assistance component, just as we've done in Iraq," he said yesterday.

Obama said the international community will continue to support Afghans as they build their country for years to come. He said the US' relation with Afghanistan will not be defined by war but by financial, development and diplomatic assistance to the worn-torn country.