WASHINGTON, February 13 (RIA Novosti) - US President Barack Obama said on Tuesday 34,000 American troops will return from Afghanistan over the next year.

“Already, we have brought home 33,000 of our brave servicemen and women. This spring, our forces will move into a support role, while Afghan security forces take the lead,” Obama said in his State of the Union address before Congress.

“Tonight, I can announce that over the next year, another 34,000 American troops will come home from Afghanistan. This drawdown will continue,” he said. “And by the end of next year, our war in Afghanistan will be over.”

The United States currently has 66,000 troops in Afghanistan.

The US president said in January he could not comment on the number of US troops who might remain in the country after the end of 2014.