Obama Makes Surprise Visit to Iraq - New York Times

President Obama made a surprise detour to Iraq on Tuesday, stopping to visit American troops and commanders before returning to Washington from his first overseas trip as president.

Air Force One landed at Baghdad International Airport at 4:42 pm, according to a pool report from reporters traveling with the president.

Robert Gibbs, the White House press secretary, said Iraq was chosen over Afghanistan as a final stop because of its proximity to Turkey, where Mr. Obama has been for the last two days, as well as a need to consult with Iraqi officials. And, Mr. Gibbs said, the trip was primarily to see troops.

“Our men and women who are in harm’s way, either in Iraq or Afghanistan, deserve our utmost respect and appreciation,” Mr. Gibbs said, adding that the president will award 10 medals of valor.

The trip is Mr. Obama’s third to Iraq, but his first as the commander in chief.

August 31, 2010: Obama names the day for Iraq war to end but up to 50,000 U.S. soldiers to stay - Daily Mail

President Obama has announced that the war in Iraq would end in 18 months.

Formally announcing a withdrawal date for most U.S. troops he said: ‘Let me say this as plainly as I can, by August 31, 2010, our combat mission in Iraq will end.’

He added: ‘We cannot sustain indefinitely a combat that is putting a strain on the American military and has cost nearly a trillion dollars.’

The confirmation of his election campaign pledge to draw the conflict to a close came as Britain’s Foreign Secretary claimed the Iraqis were ‘impatient’ to take control over their own affairs.

While visiting British troops in Basra yesterday, David Miliband said conditions in Iraq are improving every week and the country is ‘yearning’ to make its way after almost six years of occupation.

But while just a few hundred UK troops will remain after Britain pulls out of Iraq for good in July, Mr Obama was criticised by leaders in his Democrat party last night for planning to leave a U.S. force of between 30,000 and 50,000 in the country until the end of 2011.

The President said the troops were needed to train and equip the Iraqi army, protect civilian reconstruction projects and conduct limited counterterrorism operations.

Republicans in Congress also complained that pulling out troops too fast could sacrifice security gains.

The President said Iraq had weathered ‘horrific’ sectarian killings in 2006 and 2007 but that violence had now been substantially reduced, while the capabilities of its security forces, rebuilt after the U.S.-led invasion, had improved.

But he warned: ‘Iraq is not yet secure, and there will be difficult days ahead. Violencewill continue to be a part of life in Iraq.'

‘Too many fundamental political questions about Iraq’s future remain unresolved.’
The announcement came just hours after it was confirmed a ban on photographing soldiers' flag-draped coffins on their return to the States would be lifted.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates has decided to allow photos of caskets at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware, if the families of the fallen troops agree.

The current ban was put in place nearly 20 years ago by President George H.W. Bush to prevent widespread negative publicity of bodies being brought back from the first Gulf War.

Obama outlines Iraq pullout plan -BBC

President Barack Obama has announced the withdrawal of most US troops in Iraq by the end of August 2010.

In a speech at a Marine Corps base, he said the US "combat mission" in Iraq would officially end by that time.

But 35,000 to 50,000 of the 142,000 troops now in Iraq will stay on into 2011 to advise Iraqi forces, target terror and protect US interests.

Mr Obama praised the progress made but warned: "Iraq is not yet secure, and there will be difficult days ahead."

Some Democrats are concerned that the timetable falls short of his election pledges on troop withdrawal.

Mr Obama had said previously that he would completely pull out troops within 16 months of taking the top job.

Earlier this month, he ordered the deployment of up to 17,000 extra US troops to Afghanistan, saying they had been due to go to Iraq but were being redirected to "meet urgent security needs".

'Hard-earned progress'

In his address at Camp Lejeune, a Marine Corps base in North Carolina, Mr Obama said his national security team had drawn up a "new strategy" for US involvement in Iraq.

The strategy recognised that the long-term solution in Iraq must be political and that the most important decisions about its future must now be made by Iraqis, he said.

"We have also taken into account the simple reality that America can no longer afford to see Iraq in isolation from other priorities: we face the challenge of refocusing on Afghanistan and Pakistan; of relieving the burden on our military; and of rebuilding our struggling economy - and these are challenges that we will meet."

Mr Obama said all US troops would have left Iraq by the end of 2011, in line with an agreement signed between the two countries last year.

The president recognised that the conflict had been "a long war" and paid tribute to US forces who have served in Iraq.

"Thanks to the sacrifices of those who have served, we have forged hard-earned progress, we are leaving Iraq to its people, and we have begun the work of ending the war."

He also announced that his administration would increase the numbers of soldiers and Marines, in order to lessen the burden on those now serving, and was committed to expanding veterans' health care.

Addressing the Iraqi people directly, Mr Obama said theirs was "a great nation" that had persevered with resilience through tyranny, terror and sectarian violence.

He went on: "So to the Iraqi people: let me be clear about America's intentions. The United States pursues no claim on your territory or your resources.

"We respect your sovereignty and the tremendous sacrifices you have made for your country. We seek a full transition to Iraqi responsibility for the security of your country."

The two nations would build a future relationship based on mutual interest and respect, he said.

Mr Obama said there were important lessons to be learned from the Iraq conflict - among them that the US must go to war with clearly defined goals, that it must weigh the costs of action and "communicate those costs candidly to the American people".

As a result of these lessons, he had ordered a review of US policy in Afghanistan, he said, and put the costs of Iraq and Afghanistan into the federal budget.

Stressing that Iraq's future was inseparable from that of the broader Middle East, Mr Obama said the US would now "pursue principled and sustained engagement with all of the nations in the region, and that will include Iran and Syria".

The new US ambassador to Iraq would be Christopher Hill, the former US chief negotiator with North Korea, the president added.

'Still dependent'

The withdrawal plan is a middle way between the speedy reduction Mr Obama envisaged during his election campaign and the slower one some military leaders may prefer, BBC North America editor Justin Webb says.

Mr Obama wants only two combat brigades to leave this year but after December elections in Iraq the pace should quicken, our correspondent says.

The BBC's Mike Sergeant in Baghdad says that security in Iraq is now better and people say they are ready for US forces to leave.

However, some people are deeply worried about what exactly will happen when US combat troops disappear, our correspondent says.

While Iraqi forces are much better trained and equipped than before, they are still dependent on US troops for support in many areas, our correspondent adds, and a great deal of American financial and political support may be needed for years to come.

'Too many'

Democrats have expressed concern that the troop withdrawal is being watered down.

Speaking before Mr Obama briefed Congressional leaders about the plan on Thursday, Democratic Speaker Nancy Pelosi said 50,000 troops seemed too many for a residual force and needed to be justified.

However, other sceptics have expressed concern that a fast withdrawal could reverse the dramatic but fragile gains in security in Iraq.

John McHugh, the top Republican on the House armed services committee, said after the briefing that Mr Obama had promised the pullout strategy would be revisited if violence in Iraq increased.

Obama Expected to Set Date for Iraq Pullout - Washington Post

President Obama is expected to announce as early as Friday that he will remove all U.S. combat troops from Iraq by August 2010, three months later than promised during his campaign, U.S. officials said.

Obama has not made a final decision on the matter, but it could come during a trip to give a speech in North Carolina on Friday, the officials said.

"He is approaching a decision on this very soon," said one official, speaking, as others did, on the condition of anonymity because no announcement has been made. A senior administration official said Tuesday night that Obama is "nearing a decision" but insisted that no final plans had been made.

The withdrawal timetable of about 19 months was one of several options outlined for Obama by Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Michael Mullen, including a faster schedule of 16 months and a slower plan of 23 months, one official said. "The risks are different with each option, and there are pros and cons of each one," he said.

"It's the president's desire to conduct a responsible drawdown that won't put at risk the gains and allows for the protection of the troops," he said.

In his address to a joint session of Congress last night, Obama said he and his national security team are "now carefully reviewing our policies in both wars, and I will soon announce a way forward in Iraq that leaves Iraq to its people and responsibly ends this war."

About 142,000 U.S. troops are in Iraq, including 14 combat brigades of about 4,000 troops each and tens of thousands of support forces. The Obama withdrawal plan would leave a residual force of as many as 50,000 support troops that would advise Iraqi forces and perform other security missions, the officials said.
"It will require a significant number of troops to train the Iraqi military, conduct targeted counterterrorism operations and protect American personnel and assets," said another U.S. official. Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, the senior U.S. commander in Iraq, is working out the details of the composition of the residual force, he said.

Obama's expected decision would set in motion a major logistical effort by the U.S. military of pulling out a combat brigade about every five weeks.

The timing of the Iraq withdrawal was not determined by Obama's recent announcement of a troop increase in Afghanistan, the officials said, although senior Army and Marine Corps leaders have often said that the availability of reinforcements for Afghanistan will depend on the pace of removing troops from Iraq.

The decisions will keep the total number of U.S. combat brigades deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan at a relatively high level for at least the next year and a half, exerting continued stress on U.S. ground forces wearied from repeated tours.

"This next 24 months is a critical 24 months in many ways," Mullen told reporters last Friday, saying that the U.S. military had to accept important risks around the world as a result of having so many of its forces rotating in and out of Iraq and Afghanistan.

"If we have a significant ground force forward in some other place, that would create huge challenges for us," said Mullen, who recently completed a global risk assessment.

"We are taking more long-term risk, because I don't have the forces out to be engaged and developing relationships," Mullen said. He said that challenge would be alleviated after the Army and Marine Corps complete their planned growth, which will add several more ground combat brigades to the total available to deploy.

Troops out of Iraq by April, Alexander says

By Rosa Prince, Political Correspondent - Telegraph.co.uk

Speaking during a visit to Basra, Douglas Alexander, the International Development Secretary, said that a "significant draw-down" of troops was on the way.

Final negotiations are said to be underway with the Iraqi government, with Gordon Brown expected to make an announcement before Christmas.

Iraq has been pressing for the speedy withdrawal of all foreign troops, and Barack Obama, the President-Elect, is keen to pull American forces out of the country as soon as possible.

Mr Alexander said: "We'll continue to work closely with the government of Iraq but we will see a significant drawdown of British troops as a recognition of the progress and success that's been enjoyed here in Basra.

"We are looking ahead to the first half of 2009 but our focus on the moment is securing the possibility that I've seen today which is for further jobs, further investment, further prosperity."

Read the full article on the Telegraph.co.uk web site