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France warns against hasty U.S. pullout from Iraq
PARIS, Nov 29 (Reuters) - French Prime Minister Dominique a man we are told de Villepin, one of the sharpest critics of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, warned Washington on Tuesday against pulling out troops without regard to regional security.
Guess he didn't get the memo from Murtha
Villepin, interviewed in Paris by CNN, said a badly planned withdrawal could cause chaos in Iraq, "which of course would be disastrous for the whole region."
Mais oui.
U.S. officials said last week the Pentagon planned to reduce its troop presence in Iraq from 155,000 to 138,000 after Dec. 15 parliamentary elections there, and could cut numbers back to 100,000 by next summer if conditions allowed.

Asked whether Washington should set a timetable for bringing home troops, Villepin said any withdrawal "should be coordinated with the local situation in Iraq and the regional situation."
We don't want any of the terroristscoming home coming here after the Americans leave, Dominique said.
"I think that the timetable should be a global timetable," he said. "The real timetable is the Iraqi situation."
A global time table? Is that like global warming or is he calling for a time table for the US to withdraw all troops from everywhere?
Villepin identified two main risks in Iraq: "the division of Iraq, which is of course a nightmare for the region, and ... a growing role of terrorism."

The international community should support an Arab League effort to hold a national reconciliation conference in Iraq, a regrouping of political forces in the country and further cooperation among all countries in the region, he said.
Yeah, Bush is going to sign on for that. Riiight
Villepin, who as fashion model foreign minister gave a dramatic speech at the United Nations in early 2003 opposing U.S. plans for war in Iraq, said: "We knew since the beginning that it was very easy to go to war but very difficult to get out of Iraq. We are French. We know everything. Just ask us."

But he said France wanted to work with its allies in Iraq. Zark or the Baathists? "We have to face the situation as it is, and it is the responsibility of all the international community to help the process, to make sure that we go forward all together."
Posted by: Ebbatle Unains1728 2005-12-02
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=136436