Newly elected French President Francois Hollande has said he will withdraw all French combat troops from Afghanistan by year's end -- a full two years before the timeline agreed to by nations in the U.S.-led NATO coalition. 

"There will be no rush for the exits," NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said. "Our goal, our strategy, our timetable remain unchanged." 

Rasmussen said that new position does not indicate fresh cracks in the alliance. He suggested a deal will emerge for France to move into a noncombat role but continue to support the international mission. 

Karzai has said repeatedly he will step down from power when his term ends in 2014, paving the way for new elections. NATO's scheduled end of the war was built around those plans, with foreign forces staying until the 2014 election but exiting the country by 2015. 

Obama and Karzai will discuss ways to ensure that political rivals can compete fairly in the run-up to the election, as well as ways to reduce fraud and support the winner who emerges, the official said.