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Bush backs Iraq withdrawal freeze Bush backs Iraq withdrawal freeze
(about 3 hours later)
US President George W Bush says he will put a freeze on the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq, as requested by his top general in the country.US President George W Bush says he will put a freeze on the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq, as requested by his top general in the country.
In a statement the president said the "drawdown" would continue until July as planned, but then the military would need time to assess the next step.In a statement the president said the "drawdown" would continue until July as planned, but then the military would need time to assess the next step.
He said he had told his senior commander General David Petraeus "he'll have all the time he needs".He said he had told his senior commander General David Petraeus "he'll have all the time he needs".
Mr Bush also said a "major strategic shift" had occurred in Iraq.Mr Bush also said a "major strategic shift" had occurred in Iraq.
He said the past 15 months had seen military and political progress, and that "today we have the initiative".He said the past 15 months had seen military and political progress, and that "today we have the initiative".
Graph of US troops and military deaths
By July the US presence should be reduced from 20 brigades to 15 - leaving about 140,000 troops in Iraq, about the same number as were present before the US "surge" began in early 2007.
Mr Bush is portraying the withdrawal as a sign of the success for the surge, and is trying to make as much capital from it as possible, says the BBC's Adam Brookes in Baghdad.
But by referring to a "major strategic shift" he has used language that Gen Petraeus and US ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker have deliberately avoided, our correspondent adds.
Gen Petraeus said the situation in Iraq was still unsatisfactory
Mr Bush also said he was cutting tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan from 15 to 12 months, effective from 1 August, and that service personnel would have a year at home for every year served overseas.Mr Bush also said he was cutting tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan from 15 to 12 months, effective from 1 August, and that service personnel would have a year at home for every year served overseas.
The decision to halt withdrawals means the US presence in Iraq is likely to last well beyond January, when Mr Bush will leave office and a new president will take over.
Iraq is one of the key battlegrounds of the election campaign, with Republican John McCain arguing for continued engagement while Democratic rivals Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama call for full withdrawal.
ProgressProgress
In testimony on Wednesday before the House Armed Services Committee, Gen Petraeus said progress had been made in Iraq but many challenges remained.In testimony on Wednesday before the House Armed Services Committee, Gen Petraeus said progress had been made in Iraq but many challenges remained.
He said the suspension of troop withdrawals after July would allow a period of reassessment.He said the suspension of troop withdrawals after July would allow a period of reassessment.
Gen Petraeus told the House panel he was unlikely to call for another build-up of troops in Iraq even if the security situation deteriorated after some troops came home.Gen Petraeus told the House panel he was unlikely to call for another build-up of troops in Iraq even if the security situation deteriorated after some troops came home.
No-one can deny that the security situation in Iraq has improved Congressman Duncan Hunter
"That would be a pretty remote thought in my mind," he said."That would be a pretty remote thought in my mind," he said.
He has said a planned "drawdown" of about 20,000 troops should continue to July, but afterwards there should be a 45-day "period of consolidation and evaluation" before any more troops leave.He has said a planned "drawdown" of about 20,000 troops should continue to July, but afterwards there should be a 45-day "period of consolidation and evaluation" before any more troops leave.
Gen Petraeus could not say how many US troops would be in Iraq at the end of the year. There are currently 160,000 in Iraq.Gen Petraeus could not say how many US troops would be in Iraq at the end of the year. There are currently 160,000 in Iraq.
Graph of US troops and military deaths
Asked about progress made by Iraqi security forces, Gen Petraeus said they were "a very, very mixed bag across the board".
As for the recent Iraqi-led operation against militias in Basra, the US commander said it was "far too soon to say that Basra has succeeded or has failed" and that the confrontation was likely to go on for months.
Iraq sent thousands of troops to Basra in a failed attempt to force the Shia Mehdi Army militia into submission. Hundreds died in heavy fighting.
'Overstretched'
Ike Skelton, the top Democrat on the committee, said the effort dedicated to Iraq was putting US security at risk because US forces were overstretched.
Gen Petraeus said the situation in Iraq was still unsatisfactory
Congressman Skelton pointed to the threat that the next attack on the US might come from Afghanistan and said more resources should be directed to that conflict.
"Protecting this nation from direct attack is job number one, yet our allocation of forces does not match this imperative," he said.
He also asked why the Iraqi government was not doing more to pay for reconstruction costs from its own oil revenues, rather than relying on US funds.
Mr Crocker told the committee that the US had reason to sustain its large commitment to and investment in Iraq.
He said that progress in Iraq had been "substantial but also reversible".
Congressman Duncan Hunter, the senior Republican on the panel, said prospects were more promising than last year, adding: "No-one can deny that the security situation in Iraq has improved."
A day earlier, Gen Petraeus and Mr Crocker testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee and Foreign Relations Committee.
They also came face to face with the three senators vying to succeed Mr Bush as president this November.
John McCain, the Republicans' choice as candidate, was positive about the situation in Iraq while Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, the rivals for the Democratic candidacy, pressed for withdrawal.
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