Upcoming Troop Reduction Plans ‘On Track’ says U.S. Army Gen Petraeus
Plans to withdraw four Army brigade combat teams and two Marine battalions by July are “on track” as the military seeks to draw down the number of troops in Iraq as quickly as ground conditions allow, the top U.S. commander in Iraq said today.
Appearing on CNN’s “Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer,” Army Gen. David H. Petraeus said the scheduled withdrawal will reduce the number of troops at the height of the surge by one quarter, or roughly 42,500. Further reductions after July will be based on the state of Iraq’s security, he added.
“The guidance that (Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates) in fact has given me — and the president and my chain of command, what all of them have said — is that reductions after July should be conditions-based,” he said.
The general said after the upcoming drawdown, Defense Department and military officials will need time to “let things settle a bit” before making further reduction assessments. Their focus, he said, will be on removing forces expeditiously, but without undercutting progress made during the troop surge that launched this time last year.
Petraeus, commander of Multinational Force Iraq, said drawdowns aim to relieve strains on servicemembers, many of whom have engaged in multiple and extended deployments to support U.S. operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Force level reductions also would save money and cut back the flow of resources, he said.
The Army strives to provide soldiers the highest possible amount of “dwell time” — the period at home stations between deployments — and reduce deployments from 15 months to 12, the general added.
Asked today about Iraqi security forces’ capability, Petraeus said the roughly 550,000-strong force is assuming an increasingly larger role in maintaining the country’s security. The overall forces — composed of some 343,000 police members, 208,000 defense ministry soldiers and 4,000 special operations forces — suffer nearly three times the number of U.S military casualties, which Petraeus said indicated the Iraqis’ devotion to stability in their country.
You must be logged in to post a comment.