Troops withdrawal from Afghanistan still on track: Obama

Washington: The United States still intends to withdraw some 33,000 troops from Afghanistan by 2012.

The announcement was made by President Barack Obama in a letter to the US Congress.

Obama also claimed that his administration had reversed the Taliban momentum.

"We have seen great progress in our fight against al Qaeda; we have reversed the Taliban's momentum in Afghanistan; and we continue to see progress in training the Afghan National Security Forces," Obama said in a letter to the Congress, which accompanied his report on Afghanistan and Pakistan.

"This will allow us in the coming year to fully recover the 33,000 US troop surge I announced at West Point in December 2009," Obama wrote in his letter that was released by the White House.

"Beyond that change, we continue to implement the strategy and do not believe further modifications or adjustments to the metrics, resources, or authorities are required at this time.

"Huge challenges remain, and this is the beginning – but not the end – of our effort to wind down this war," Obama said.