U.S. Sees Progress In British Iraq Withdrawal Plan
U.S. officials have praised the pullout as proof of improved security (epa)
Opposition Democratic Party lawmakers who control the U.S. Congress have meanwhile called on President George W. Bush to emulate the British plan and start withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq.
Responding to Prime Minister Tony Blair's announcement that the British force in southern Iraq would be reduced from 7,100 troops to 5,500 in the coming months, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq "remains intact and, in fact, the British still have thousands of soldiers deployed in Iraq, in the south, and any decisions that they make are going to be on the basis of conditions, but it is the plan that, as it is possible to transfer responsibilities to the Iraqis, that coalition forces would no longer be needed in those circumstances."
U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney has characterized the British decision as indicating that "significant progress" has been made in improving conditions in southern Iraq.
Democratic lawmakers said the British move provided support for their position that a political solution, not the deployment of more U.S. troops, is needed in Iraq.
(compiled from agency reports)
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