German Defense Minister Visits Afghanistan

German Defense Minister Thomas de Maiziere on Monday arrived in Afghanistan to review the progress of coalition forces handing over security functions to Afghan troops.

He said his 10th visit to the country as defense minister was to focus on examining "how the Afghans are progressively taking responsibility for security in the country."

After arriving in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif where the German troops in the country are based, he was to travel later to the capital Kabul.

With around 4,800 troops, Germany is the third largest force under NATO's International Security Assistance Force, behind Britain's 9,500 troops and the more than 90,000 U.S. troops.

A report in October in the Der Spiegel newsweekly said that Berlin plans to significantly reduce its troops in the country to "comfortably under 4,000" when the government asks parliament in January for a new mandate for the force.

Foreign troops have now begun pulling out of Afghanistan and all combat forces will be gone by the end of 2014, according to a withdrawal schedule agreed by the U.S. and NATO.