Iraqi troops will be ready to take over from foreign forces as early as November 2007, new Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said ahead of a summit between the US and British leaders aimed at charting a new course for the war-ravaged country. “Our forces will be able to take over the security file in all Iraqi provinces in a year and a half,” Maliki pledged Wednesday. But his comment came a day after Washington downplayed any imminent cutbacks in US forces amid surging violence in Iraq, where Maliki’s government was sworn in on Saturday after months of political bickering.