'Thousands Of Troops To Pull Out Of Iraq' - Sky

Around 12,000 American troops will pull out of Iraq by September in what is being seen as an acceleration of the US withdrawal.

US military spokesman Major General David Perkins said the move will reduce America's combat power from 14 brigades to 12 brigades.

He also said the US is handing over more facilities to the Iraqi military as part of the withdrawal.
President Barack Obama has decided to remove all combat troops from Iraq by the end of August 2010, with all troops gone by the end of 2011.

But up to now, details of withdrawals have remained sketchy.

"Two brigade combat teams who were scheduled to redeploy in the next six months, along with enabling forces such as logistics, engineers and intelligence, will not be replaced," the US military said.

There are currently about 135,000 US troops in Iraq, down from 156,000 last June.
Meanwhile, the remaining 4,000 UK troops there will withdraw from the country by July this year, Iraqi officials have said.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown visited Iraq in December and announced the troops would leave by the end of July.

But he added their mission would already be complete "by the end of May, or earlier".
On January 1 this year, British forces handed over control of Basra airport, its main military base in the south, to Iraqi officials.

British troops withdrew from Basra city last September and since then, they have been training the Iraqi army.

After British troops leave, a small contingent of military advisers is likely to stay on in Iraq.

Election success pave way for the leaving of Basra - Independent

By Terri Judd

Basra's elections passed without major incident this weekend setting the tone for the British end game in Iraq.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's sweeping victory in the provincial elections, in which voters chose secular and nationalist parties over religious ones, was reflected in the country's second largest city, where initial reports suggest his list has claimed 50 per cent of the vote.

The relatively peaceful passing of the election set the right tone for the withdrawal of British forces, who are due to leave by the end of July.

UK soldiers, who have assisted in planning and mentoring the Iraqi security services, were on standby to assist with any outbreaks of violence but weren't needed.

This was the first election to be secured by the Iraqis themselves as well as the first to be run by the Iraqis, through the Iraqi International High Electoral Commission.

It has also been the first election where Basrawis voted on the performance of elected officials (the last provincial elections were in 2005) and the first time all the ethnic groups participated (the last time the Sunnis boycotted the elections).

Mr Maliki called the polls "a victory for all the Iraqis" while Prime Minister Gordon Brown Gordon Brown said: "That so many Iraqis once again braved the threat of intimidation to vote in provincial elections sends the clearest possible signal of their commitment to Iraq's sovereign, democratic future."

In Basra all leave was cancelled for the 28,000 Iraqi police and soldiers in the lead up to the voting and a hotline encouraged locals to tip the security services off to any militia activity.
British Military operations will end by 31 May and the remaining 4,100 service personnel will leave within two months. Several hundred trainers will remain, some working with the Iraqi navy.

Violence in the city has dropped dramatically since last March when Iraqi forces, backed by Americans and Brits broke the militias stronghold.

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UK troops have met Iraq exit conditions - Reuters

British troops in Iraq have largely met the conditions required for their withdrawal and are on track to begin leaving the country by May 31, a top British commander said on Monday.

Major General Andy Salmon, commander of coalition forces in southeastern Iraq, said the holding of peaceful provincial elections on Saturday met the latest of Prime Minister Gordon Brown's goals for removing Britain's 4,000 troops from Iraq by the end of July.

"In the main, we've completely met the conditions," Salmon told Pentagon reporters in a video link from Basra.

"With that in mind, then, we will see British troops start to transition. They will finish the mission by the 31st of May and British troops will be out of Iraq by the 31st of July."

Two other goals set by Brown were the transfer of Basra's international airport to Iraqi control, which occurred earlier this month, and the rejuvenation of the region's economy.

Salmon said Saturday's elections showed that Iraqi forces are capable of tackling any political violence that might erupt as newly elected provincial council members select new regional governors by the end of March.

He also said the violence has fallen to levels not seen since the start of the war, which has encouraged investment interest.

Regional business leaders have received 17 firm offers of outside investment interest for projects worth $12.8 billion (9 billion pound). Potential investors include British drug maker GlaxoSmithKline and oil giant Shell, he said.

(Reporting by David Morgan; Editing by Vicki Allen)

UK troops to leave Iraq 'by July' - BBC

Gordon Brown and Iraqi prime minister Nouri Maliki say UK forces will have "completed their tasks" and leave the country by the end of July next year.

The two leaders' joint statement came as they held talks in Baghdad before Mr Brown headed to Basra.

The UK PM praised his forces for making Iraq a "better place".

There are currently about 4,100 UK troops in Basra, southern Iraq. Between 200 to 300 military advisers are likely to remain after combat troops leave.

'New era'

The withdrawal announcement comes after at least 18 people were killed and dozens wounded in a twin bomb attack in Baghdad on Wednesday.

BBC diplomatic correspondent Paul Adams said the announcement ended months of speculation.
At a press conference, Mr Brown said: "We have agreed today that the mission will end no later than 31 May next year.

"Our troops will be coming home within the next two months [after that]."

Mr Maliki confirmed that the agreement included a provision for the Iraqi government to request an extension of the British military presence.

However, both leaders indicated it was not expected to be used.
Mr Brown said: "We have made a huge contribution and of course given people an economic stake in the future of Iraq. We leave Iraq a better place."

He added: "I am proud of the contribution British forces have made. They are the pride of Britain and the best in the world."

In their joint statement, the leaders said the role played by the UK combat forces was "drawing to a close".

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British PM Brown in Iraq on surprise visit: TV

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown arrived in Baghdad on Wednesday on a surprise visit expected to focus on the fate of his country's remaining troops in Iraq.

"Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki this morning welcomed his British counterpart Gordon Brown in Baghdad," state television Al-Iraqiya said.

It is Brown's fourth visit to Iraq since he took office in June last year and comes hot on the heels of a farewell trip by George W. Bush that was marked by an Iraqi journalist hurling his shoes at the US president.

London newspapers have reported that Britain intends to begin withdrawing troops in March with most out by June, although defence officials insist the precise timetable will depend on conditions on the ground at the time.

Britain has around 4,100 troops in Iraq, based at Basra airport outside the southern oil port city. They are training local troops but retain the capacity to intervene if required by Iraqi forces.
Brown's visit comes after the Iraqi cabinet approved a bill calling for all foreign soldiers except for American forces to pull out of the country by the end of July.

Citing a senior defence source, the BBC and The Times newspaper said the pullout was planned to begin in March -- six years after the US-led invasion of Iraq -- if provincial elections set for the end of January passed off peacefully.

The Ministry of Defence did not deny the reports.

"We plan -- subject to the conditions on the ground and the advice of military commanders -- to reduce our force levels in Iraq as we complete our key tasks in Basra in the early months of next year," an MoD spokesman said.

But he added: "Final decisions on the timing of the drawdown will depend on the circumstances at the time.

"We will remain committed to Iraq. We expect to move from next year towards a long-term, broad-based bilateral relationship with Iraq similar to the relationship we have with other allies in the region, including a training and education role for our military personnel."

British commanders had intended to reduce troop numbers to 2,500 earlier this year, though conditions on the ground prevented them from doing so.

On his last visit to Iraq in July, Brown spelled out four objectives to be completed before British troop numbers could be reduced.

These were finishing the training of the Iraqi army in Basra, transferring Basra airport to civilian use, aiding local economic development and providing support for the January 31 election -- the first vote in the country since 2005.

On his return, he told British parliament that he expected a "fundamental change of mission in the first months of 2009" but he expressly ruled out setting a timetable for their withdrawal.

For the story on the AFP site click here

PM Brown visits RAF in Basra

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown thanked troops with the 901 Expeditionary Air Wing stationed in the southern Iraqi province of Basra.
Brown, on a regional tour for the International Monetary Fund, told British forces in Iraq in support of Operation Telic, their Iraqi war effort, they were playing a key role in securing the war-torn country, the British Royal Air Force said.

The 901 Expeditionary Air Wing is in the region on a support mission for fixed-wing aircraft operations.

"It was good to see the prime minister here," said Cmdr. Tony Barmby. "Despite his busy program in the Middle East, I do know the prime minister insisted on making time to visit RAF and other U.K. service personnel."

Read the full article on the Middle East Times here