December 2, 2008 8:05:41 PM CST
(Newser) – Troop levels in Iraq won't change until after George Bush leaves office, the president will announce in a speech today, leaving further withdrawals as an immediate matter for his successor —although Bush will oversee what amounts to a transfer of US troops from Iraq to Afghanistan. The announcement likely represents his last major decision in the pair of wars, the Washington Post reports.
“As we learned in Iraq, the best way to restore the confidence of the people is to restore basic security —and that requires more troops,” Bush will say of Afghanistan as he lauds improvements in Iraq which 2 years ago were “virtually unimaginable.” The speech salutes a withdrawal compromise among military leaders. Nearly half of Bush’s remarks will focus on Afghanistan, where “enemies of a free” nation have “refused to give up the fight."
Source Washington Post
Nov 18, 08 1:44 AM CST The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is "comfortable" with the new US-Iraq security pact scheduling the start of an American troop pullout next year, but believes some major hurdles still exist, the Washington Post reports. Admiral Michael Mullen cautioned that the US has huge amounts of equipment and thousands of troops within the country, and it will likely take up to three years to get everything out of the nation safely. More »
Nov 16, 08 7:31 AM CST Iraq’s cabinet has approved a long-debated plan to allow US troops to stay in the country until 2011—three years beyond their UN mandate, Reuters reports. Consideration of the pact now moves to parliament, where it will likely pass, an official said. American troops are scheduled to leave Iraqi towns and villages during 2009 and quit the country altogether in 2011, according to a draft of the agreement. The pact also puts Iraq in charge of the troops for the first time. More »
Oct 27, 08 8:30 AM CDT Soldiers are likely to face involuntary extensions of combat duty throughout 2009, USA Today reports, despite repeated Pentagon promises to rely less on the practice. Roughly 12,000 soldiers are hit with “stop loss”—which forces them to stay in the Army after their commitment has expired—each month, and that number is likely to remain constant throughout 2009, assuming the demand for troops remains constant. More than 140,000 have been affected since 2002. More »
Oct 6, 08 1:56 PM CDT Members of the US military and their families are looking to the November election to address the hardships of military life, but opinions vary as to which candidate will serve them best, the Boston Globe reports. John McCain’s vows to honor service—and promise of higher pay—have clear appeal, but so do Barack Obama’s goals of ending the Iraq war and reuniting families. More »
Aug 31, 08 10:46 AM CDT President Bush’s 2007 addition of 20,000 troops in Iraq helped stabilize the country —but advisers didn’t support the idea until the situation there looked like “civil war,” in the CIA’s words. Instead, the Pentagon wanted to shift responsibilities to Iraqi troops; the State Department wanted to focus fighting elsewhere; and the US Iraq ambassador said a troop surge would hurt conditions there, the New York Times reports. More »
We have been able to carry out a policy of 'return on success' -- reducing American combat forces in Iraq as conditions on the ground continue to improve. - President George W. Bush
George W. Bush • Iraq war • US military • troop withdrawal • Afghanistan war • troop levels
