The Scotsman
Well-Known Member
US President Barack Obama has announced he will withdraw his country's combat forces from Iraq by the end of August 2010.
The 18-month timetable marks a historic juncture in a war that has been enormously costly to the US and defined the presidency of George W Bush.
It has been a huge drain on the Treasury, cost the lives of some 4,250 US soldiers and damaged America's standing in the world.
"I have chosen a time-line that will remove our combat brigades over the next 18 months. Let me say this as plainly as I can: by August 31, 2010, our combat mission in Iraq will end," Mr Obama said at Camp Lejeune, a Marine Corps base in North Carolina.
But Mr Obama said 35,000 to 50,000 troops would remain to train and equip the Iraqi forces, protect civilian reconstruction projects and conduct limited counter-terrorism operations.
"Under the Status of Forces Agreement with the Iraqi government, I intend to remove all US troops from Iraq by the end of 2011. We will complete this transition to Iraqi responsibility, and we will bring our troops home with the honour that they have earned," he said.
Mr Obama's decision to leave a sizeable force to bolster stability was welcomed by congressional Republicans, including former presidential candidate Senator John McCain, while some Democrats were concerned too many troops would remain in Iraq.
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/4/20090227/twl-obama-us-troops-out-of-iraq-by2010-41f21e0.html
The 18-month timetable marks a historic juncture in a war that has been enormously costly to the US and defined the presidency of George W Bush.
It has been a huge drain on the Treasury, cost the lives of some 4,250 US soldiers and damaged America's standing in the world.
"I have chosen a time-line that will remove our combat brigades over the next 18 months. Let me say this as plainly as I can: by August 31, 2010, our combat mission in Iraq will end," Mr Obama said at Camp Lejeune, a Marine Corps base in North Carolina.
But Mr Obama said 35,000 to 50,000 troops would remain to train and equip the Iraqi forces, protect civilian reconstruction projects and conduct limited counter-terrorism operations.
"Under the Status of Forces Agreement with the Iraqi government, I intend to remove all US troops from Iraq by the end of 2011. We will complete this transition to Iraqi responsibility, and we will bring our troops home with the honour that they have earned," he said.
Mr Obama's decision to leave a sizeable force to bolster stability was welcomed by congressional Republicans, including former presidential candidate Senator John McCain, while some Democrats were concerned too many troops would remain in Iraq.
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/4/20090227/twl-obama-us-troops-out-of-iraq-by2010-41f21e0.html