PM ushers in new relationship with Iraq

The Prime Minister has announced plans to “strengthen and deepen” the relationship between Iraq and the UK as combat operations draw to a close.

Gordon Brown said British combat patrols in Basra are coming to an end and armed forces are now preparing to withdraw.

The PM welcomed Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki to Downing Street this morning where the two leaders held talks and signed a declaration of friendship and co-operation.

UK troops hailed - Gulf Daily News

Prime Minister Gordon Brown paid tribute to the "outstanding contribution" made by British troops in Iraq as they officially began withdrawing from the country yesterday.

The withdrawal of British forces from their headquarters outside the main southern city of Basra signalled the end of six years of military operations that began with the US-led invasion that ousted dictator Saddam Hussein. All 4,100 British troops will leave by the end of July. Major General Andy Salmon, the senior British officer in Basra, handed over the southern base to an American commander.

Iraq not fazed by pending US pullout: Maliki

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki insisted on Thursday he was not fazed by a US withdrawal from the violence-scarred country as President Barack Obama prepared to announce a timeline for pulling out the troops.

"We have faith in our armed forces and our security services, to protect the country and consolidate security and stability," he said during talks with visiting Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed al-Sabah.

"We have no worries for Iraq if American troops pull out," Maliki added, according to a statement from his office. "Thank God we have succeeded in ridding ourselves of sectarianism and racism."

Obama, who took office in January, was due to reveal his timeline for withdrawing US troops from Iraq on Friday during a visit to a Marine Corps base at Camp LeJeune, North Carolina.

Earlier this month, he approved an extra 17,000 soldiers for Afghanistan, confirming that Washington's focus was shifting from Baghdad to Kabul as the security situation in Iraq improves.

US officials have said that after weeks of discussions with top military commanders Obama is now leaning towards a 19-month Iraq pullout option rather than the 16-month target he backed when campaigning.

The Iraq drawdown is expected to allow more US troops to be deployed to Afghanistan, where the 17,000 troops will add to the 36,000-strong US force already there.

There are 142,000 American troops stationed in Iraq.

In an address to Congress on Tuesday, Obama said he was "now carefully reviewing our policies in both wars.

"I will soon announce a way forward in Iraq that leaves Iraq to its people and responsibly ends this war," he said.

Under a so-called Status of Forces Agreement signed with Baghdad last year, Washington agreed to withdraw all its combat troops by the end of 2011.

"It appears he's leaning to the 19-month option," an official said in Washington. "I think that's the way it's going." But he added that there was still "no final decision."

Military officers presented Obama -- an opponent of the US-led war on Iraq in 2003 -- with three options for the withdrawal, with deadlines of 16 months, 19 months and 23 months, officials said.

At least 4,249 US military personnel have died in Iraq since the invasion, according to an AFP tally based on the independent website www.icasualties.org.

Meanwhile Foreign Secretary David Miliband of Britain, which will withdraw its 4,100 remaining troops in July, flew in to Baghdad on a previously unannounced visit for talks with Iraqi leaders.

His arrival amid a flurry of diplomacy at a time of improved security in the country coincided with a landmark visit by Sheikh Mohammed in the highest-level visit since Saddam Hussein's forces invaded Kuwait in 1990.

Miliband was expected to meet British troops in the southern province of Basra where on January 1 they transferred control of Basra airport, Britain's main military base in the south, to Iraqi officials.

British troops withdrew from Basra city last September and transferred security control of the province some three months later after controlling it since the invasion.

On a visit to Iraq in December British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said his country's remaining troops would leave by the end of July, but their mission would already be complete "by the end of May, or earlier."

Troops could leave Iraq by next summer

British troops could withdraw from Iraq as early as next summer with the Iraqi government calling for foreign forces to leave the country.

The situation in Basra where British forces have been based has radically changed since the Iraqi government has taken on local insurgents this year.

International development secretary Douglas Alexander hinted British forces could be removed soon.

"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," Sky News quoted him as saying.

"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," he added.

The Iraqi government's Charge of the Knights campaign in March to clear militias out of Basra has set the course for change and now Iraqis want to take control.

The process of handing Basra airport and airspace over to the Iraqis will begin over the next few weeks with American forces taking over camp security.

Gordon Brown when questioned on the issue did not speculate about a possible withdrawal next year in this week's prime minister's questions, but said an announcement about a "fundamental" change in the nature of the mission can be expected before the end of this year.

For the full news story see www.inthenews.co.uk

Brits Out Of Iraq By The Summer - Sky News

Final negotiations are under way with the Iraqi government, and Prime Minister Gordon Brown is expected to make an announcement by Christmas.

Iraq is pressing for the withdrawal of all foreign troops and is in talks with the Americans about their role once the United Nations mandate expires at the end of this year.

British forces have been based in the south of the country since the invasion in 2003.
The situation has changed dramatically in Basra since the Iraqi government took on the local militias earlier this year. As a result, the British presence in Basra could be all but over by next summer.

Douglas Alexander in Basra

Britain's International Development Minister, Douglas Alexander, is here flying the British flag.

He told me: "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."
More immediately, it is believed the process of handing over Basra airport and airspace to the Iraqis will begin within weeks. And American forces will soon take over camp security.

It is also thought that large security projects will be taken over by the Iraqis and Americans, working together.

Major James Gasson-Hargraves, the commander here, says the Iraqis are eager to take control.
"The reality is they are the sheriffs of this town, they own it. The townspeople come to them with their issues, not to me. I'm merely here in the background as support and the Iraqis are on top of where they're going."

Back in March, the Iraqi government's so-called 'charge of the knights campaign' to clear out the militias that had taken over the city was the catalyst for change.

It also convinced some in Baghdad that the British forces were dispensable.

Five years after their arrival here the end game is now being played out.

Read the full report and more on Sky News

Asharq Al-Awsat Interview: British PM Gordon Brown

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has spent the last four days visiting three Gulf states as part of his efforts to lead in tackling the international financial crisis. Brown had a message of assurance to the region of his understanding of the importance to include the region in the decision-making process regarding the global economy, through reforms of bodies like the IMF. He spoke exclusively to Asharq Al-Awsat about his visit, along with his continued interest to support Iraq militarily and financially, while highlighting the importance of maintaining momentum in the Middle East Peace Process.

Read the full interview on Asarq Al-Awsat