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Gates on surprise visit to Iraq, PM denies need for troops beyond 2011

Güncelleme Tarihi:

Gates on surprise visit to Iraq, PM denies need for troops beyond 2011
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Aralık 13, 2008 12:45

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates urged Middle East nations to support the fight against terror Saturday ahead of a surprise visit to Iraq to meet with commanders as the U.S. prepares to cut its troops levels and begin to pull forces out of the cities.

The Iraqi prime minister refuted statements from a government spokesman suggesting troops might remain in the country for up to a decade.

 

The unannounced visit to Iraq on Saturday comes as President-elect Barack Obama prepares to take office and begin to implement what many expect will be an accelerated withdrawal of troops.

 

A security agreement between the U.S. and Iraq mandates that combat forces leave the cities by next June, and leave Iraq in three years.

 

Earlier in Bahrain, Gates urged Middle East nations to help fight the spread of violent extremism by funding and training Afghan security forces and reaching out more aggressively to the fledgling government in Iraq.

 

Gates also assured the gathering of Persian Gulf leaders in Bahrain that Obama will continue the U.S. commitment to the Middle East, including efforts to fight terrorism and develop a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians.

 

The sole member of the Bush administration to join the Obama team, Gates issued a public warning that any effort by terrorists to test the new administration would be a mistake because there has been extensive planning to ensure a smooth transition.

 

"Anyone who thought that the upcoming months might present opportunities to test the new administration would be sorely mistaken," Gates said. "President Obama and his national security team, myself included, will be ready to defend the interests of the United States and our friends and allies from the moment he takes office on Jan. 20."

 

Gates has also persistently pressed Middle East nations to provide political, economic and overall support to Iraq, saying that if that country falls back into extremist control it will be a threat to the entire region.

 

TROOPS NOT TO STAY BEYOND 2011-IRAQI PM  

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki distanced himself from statements by his government's spokesman that U.S. troops might remain in Iraq for a decade, much longer than agreed under a pact signed with Washington.

 

"What Dr. Ali al-Dabbagh announced about Iraqi forces needing 10 years to be ready was a personal opinion and does not represent the Iraqi government opinion," Maliki's office said in a statement issued late on Friday.

 

The statement underscored the sensitivity of the future of U.S. troops in Iraq following the 2003 U.S.-led invasion and the sectarian bloodshed and insurgency that it unleashed.

 

Violence has died down significantly in recent months.

 

But officials warn the security gains are fragile and could unravel as Iraq prepares for elections and U.S. troops pull out of cities next year, ahead of a full U.S. withdrawal by the end of 2011, as agreed in the U.S.-Iraq security pact.

 

Dabbagh, on a visit to Washington this week, raised the possibility of some of the 149,000 U.S. troops in Iraq remaining for longer than the date defined by the security pact.

 

"We do understand that the Iraqi military is not going to get built out in the three years. We do need many more years. It might be 10 years," Dabbagh said at a Pentagon press briefing.

 

He said that future Iraqi leaders would decide what kind of U.S. presence might be required after 2011.

 

Iraq's parliament approved the bilateral security agreement setting the end-2011 deadline after fierce and protracted debate. It is scheduled to be put to a referendum next year.

 

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