File Photo: People protest against U.S. strike on Syria outside the White House in Washington D.C., the United States, on April 14, 2018. (Xinhua/Yang Chenglin)

WASHINGTON, Jan. 2 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that the U.S. troops would be withdrawing from Syria "over a period of time," dismissing the previously reported four-month exit plan.

"Over a period of time. I never said I'm getting out tomorrow," Trump told reporters at the White House in a cabinet meeting when asked if there is a time table for withdrawal.

Trump dismissed a New York Times story reporting earlier that the U.S. military had been given about four months to retreat the 2,000 soldiers from the war-torn country.

The Trump administration announced on Dec. 19 that it had started returning U.S. troops home from Syria after claiming a victory in the fight against the Islamic State.

U.S. media cited anonymous officials as saying that the United States was planning a "rapid" and "full" withdrawal of troops from Syria.

Trump himself last week reversed the tone in a tweet, claiming that his country is "slowly" withdrawing troops from Syria.

Currently, there are more than 2,000 U.S. soldiers deployed in Syria.