NATO on Thursday welcomed U.S. President Barack Obama's plan to withdraw troops from Afghanistan, calling the decision "a natural result of the progress" against militants.

"I have spoken with President Obama. I welcome his announcement to begin the drawdown of U.S. forces in Afghanistan in July," NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said in a statement.

"The president's decision is a natural result of the progress we have made. It follows close consultations with NATO Allies and partners," he added.

Rasmussen said that the U.S. decision to deploy 30,000 additional troops in December 2009, along with some 10,000 extra troops from other NATO countries and partners, helped change the momentum in Afghanistan.

"We can see the tide is turning. The Taliban are under pressure. The Afghan security forces are getting stronger every day. And the transition to Afghan security lead is on track to be completed in 2014," he said.

Obama announced Wednesday that 10,000 U.S. troops would leave Afghanistan by the end of this year and another 23,000 would go home by next summer.