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Bush: More U.S. Troops in Support Roles
WASHINGTON (AP) - While "formidable challenges" remain in Iraq, President Bush said Saturday, the United States will start shifting more troops into support roles - in addition to the troop withdrawals announced last week.In December, the United States will begin a new military phase in Iraq - one in which "our troops will shift over time from leading operations to partnering with Iraqi forces, and eventually to overwatching those forces," Bush said in his weekly radio address. Bush was following the recommendations of Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq. In a televised speech Thursday, Bush announced he had approved Petraeus' plan to withdraw 5,700 troops from Iraq by the holidays and reduce the force from 20 combat brigades to 15 brigades by July 2008. On Friday, Defense Secretary Robert Gates raised the possibility of cutting U.S. troop levels in Iraq to 100,000 or so by the end of next year - well beyond the cuts Bush announced in his speech Thursday. The defense secretary confirmed that he was referring to cutting from the projected level of 15 combat brigades in July to 10 brigades at the end of 2008, and that this would translate to roughly 100,000 troops. Posted by: Steve White 2007-09-17 |
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