David Cameron visits troops in Afghanistan

Where it once had about 9,500 military personnel in Afghanistan, by the end of this month Britain is expected to have about 5,200 troops on the ground.

Cameron repeatedly said he has no plans to break his promise of bringing all combat troops home by the end of 2014 and that this would be his last pre-Christmas visit.

While the U.K. will not be leaving behind a “perfect country,” Cameron said, it is important to note that the purpose of the NATO mission was to build an Afghan security force that could maintain basic security and ensure the country never became a haven for terrorist training camps again.

“That is the mission, that was the mission, and I think we will have accomplished that mission and so our troops can be very proud of what they have done,” he said.