Pentagon Exit Strategy Relies on Advisers

Further delay of Iraq government's decision could jeopardize smooth transition

(AP) - Iraq's indecision on whether to ask American forces to stay beyond the end of the year is pushing the US close to the point where a smooth, safe troop withdrawal will be jeopardized, the top US military officer said today upon arriving in the country. Adm. Mike Mullen said that American and Iraqi operations over the last several weeks have tamped down a recent surge in violence there, but he's not sure how long that will last. "Now is the time. We have to know," Mullen told reporters just before landing in Mosul. More»

Security contractors to swell to 7K

(NEWSER) - The US military may be rolling out of Iraq , but American civilians are not. To protect its outposts, the State Department plans to double the number of private security guards on the ground, finds the New York Times . As many as 7,000 guards will search for roadside bombs, fly reconnaissance drones, and continue training Iraqi police. “We need strategic patience here,” says a former US ambassador to Iraq. “Our timetables are getting out ahead of Iraqi reality." More»

(NEWSER) - US Defense Secretary Robert Gates has landed in Iraq for a surprise visit, the AP reports. He'll meet with troops stationed at a command post in southern Iraq who are largely serving as advisers. He's also expected to see Iraq Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, and visit the restive Kurdish region. More»

(AP) - Four US soldiers were killed in combat shortly before the American military completed a withdrawal from Iraq's cities last night. But prime minister Nouri al-Maliki assured Iraqis in a televised address today that government forces are in control: "Those who think that Iraqis are not able to protect their country and that the withdrawal of foreign forces will create a security vacuum are committing a big mistake." More»

Defense secretary wants to close Gitmo, focus on Afghanistan

(NEWSER) - Assuming he keeps his job, Robert Gates will have a transformed set of instructions come Jan. 20: Once charged with winning the war in Iraq, the defense secretary will now have to end it. But Gates and Barack Obama have substantial agreements about the nation's military strategy, the New York Times reports, from shifting more troops to Afghanistan to shutting down Guantanamo. More»