US President Barack Obama said the US military will keep 9,800 of its soldiers in Afghanistan after the war formally ends by year-end and withdraw most of those men by 2016. There will still be some 1,000 US troops in the war-ravaged country by 2016.

Obama's plan will see the US military cut its current force of 32,000 to 9,800 by the start of 2015. The remaining troops will operate throughout Afghanistan and focus on counter-terrorism missions and training Afghan security forces. They will not enter combat.

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Next year, the number of US troops will be reduced by half and concentrated in the capital of Kabul and at Bagram Air Field, the main US base in Afghanistan. The 1,000 Americans left behind in 2016 will staff a security office in Kabul.

The almost complete US withdrawal by the end of 2015 will allow Obama to fully end America's longest war by the time he leaves office in 2016. Obama will have become the first US President since World War II not to have joined a foreign war.

The two-year withdrawal, however, depends on Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai signing a bilateral security agreement with the US. Karzai, who has displayed increasing animosity toward the US, has repeatedly refused to sign the agreement.

Administration sources said they believe any presidential candidates seeking to replace Karzai will sign the bilateral security agreement.

Obama made the announcement after returning from a surprise weekend trip to Afghanistan where he met with US commanders and American soldiers.

At least 2,184 US soldiers have died during the country's 13-year war in Afghanistan, a further 19,600 were wounded.

Over the past 13 years, 831,576 US soldiers have served at least one tour of duty in Afghanistan. The war has cost the US $537.8 billion.

US troop strength in Afghanistan peaked at 100,000 in August 2010 and from March to May of 2011.  This total was ten times the number of US forces in the preceding decade.