Gates Foresees Narrower US Role in Iraq

[unhappycamper]

Gates Foresees Narrower US Role in Iraq
September 15, 2008
Associated Press

BAGHDAD - Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Monday he foresees a shrinking U.S. combat role in Iraq in coming months, while the No. 2 U.S. commander here cautioned that it would be a mistake to push the U.S.-trained Iraqi army and police into a leading security role before they are ready.

"I'm not sure that pushing them forward is the right thing that we want to do. We tried that once before and found that that didn't work," Lt. Gen. Lloyd Austin told reporters, referring to the pre-2007 U.S. strategy, which focused on handing off security responsibility to the Iraqis as quickly as possible while reducing the U.S. presence. That approach faltered, leaving Iraq on the brink of all-out civil war before President Bush switched strategies and put Gen. David Petraeus in charge in Baghdad.

Austin said key measures of insurgent violence today are about 80 percent lower than one year ago.

Petraeus is scheduled to hand off on Tuesday to his successor, Lt. Gen. Ray Odierno. Odierno, who served for 15 months as the No. 2 U.S. commander here before leaving last February, will be promoted to four-star rank at a separate ceremony prior to the formal change-of-command ceremony.

Gates, who planned to preside at the change-of-command ceremony, told reporters traveling with him on an overnight flight from Washington that conditions have improved enough to permit a continuation of the process of handing off responsibility to the Iraqi security forces. Last week he told Congress that the war was now in the "endgame," with U.S. forces drawing back to a secondary role.


Rest of article at: http://www.military.com/news/article/September-2008/gates-foresees-narrower-us-role-in-iraq.html?col=1186032325324



uhc comment: Whatever happened to the "We'll stand down as they stand up" meme?