Merkel told public television on Sunday that she wanted to bring the German soldiers home "as soon as possible" but not until their mission was complete. According to the chancellor, Berlin's goal was self-sustained security for Afghanistan.

Questions over the German troop presence in Afghanistan had been raised by Foreign Minister Frank Walter Steinmeier on Saturday.

Steinmeier's Social Democrats (SPD) are currently sharing power in an uncomfortable grand coalition with Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU), but the foreign minister hopes to unseat Germany's first female chancellor in the upcoming Sept. 27 elections.

Steinmeier said that he would prepare a timetable for a German pullout if his party wins next month's election. As chancellor, he said, he would "press for clear perspectives with the new Afghan government for the end of military involvement."

Competing for voters

Participation in the NATO mission is rather unpopular with voters and Steinmeier's suggestions for a "withdrawal scenario" are likely to have been made with a keen eye on opinion polls which for the last weeks gave Merkel a substantial lead over her rival.

Steinmeier, however, did not name a concrete date for a German pullout.

Last month, German Defense Minister and Merkel's party colleague Franz Josef Jung said that German troops could be in Afghanistan for up to 10 more years.

Germany has around 4,000 soldiers as part of the NATO-led mission in Afghanistan. The troops deployed in Kunduz region of the country are mostly involved in training local police and supporting civil infrastructure projects.

A parliamentary mandate, which allows Germany to contribute up to 4,500 troops to the NATO mission, expires in December and must be renewed if the troops are to remain in Afghanistan.

ai/dpa/AP
Editor: Toma Tasovac