A debate over whether to set a timetable for a phased withdrawal of US forces from Iraq is being preempted by key US allies who have announced plans to scale back their own forces over the next year, analysts say. The latest and most important to announce was Britain, whose defense minister said Monday the 7,100-member British contingent will be scaled back "by a matter of thousands" by the end of next year. Poland, which commands a 2,000-strong multi-national division in southern Iraq, said Monday that its 880-man contingent will be out of Iraq by late 2007. Italy, once a mainstay of the coalition force with 3,000 troops in Iraq, has withdrawn all but 60 to 70 troops from the country and those will be gone by early December, said Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi....
http://news.yahoo.com
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Editor - 22:23:00 11-27-06
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 Blair’s Iraq exit strategy seems to be out of the frying pan, into the fire |
Now we know the plan for British troops in Iraq: begin to pull out, leaving a few thousand for training and helping with emergencies. Des Browne, Defence Secretary, shaded in some of the blanks yesterday in what is now Britain’s exit strategy. Some in the Bush Administration think that the US should emulate Britain’s tactics; others, that they risk more turmoil, and are a luxury available only to the junior partner in the coalition. In Afghanistan, in contrast, Britain has taken the lead: of the Nato forces; of the anti-narcotics effort, and of the turbulent south of the country. It not only has no exit strategy, it is also trying to persuade others to enter. It risks putting itself in Afghanistan in the same predicament that has engulfed the US in Iraq....
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-2474889,00.html
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Editor - 20:26:00 11-27-06
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| Bush intensifies diplomatic efforts to quell rising violence in Iraq, Afghanistan |
Bush intensified diplomatic efforts on Monday to quell rising violence in Iraq and Afghanistan, turning to allies as his national security adviser said the conflict in Iraq had entered "a new phase" requiring changes."Obviously everyone would agree things are not proceeding well enough or fast enough," National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley told reporters aboard Air Force One as Bush flew eastward.The president was spending Monday night in this tiny Baltic nation ahead of a two-day NATO summit in Riga, Latvia, expected to deal with deteriorating conditions in Afghanistan, where NATO has 32,000 troops.Both Estonia and Latvia are former Soviet republics that are strong allies in the war on terror.Bush will head to Amman, Jordan, for talks Wednesday and Thursday with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and King Abdullah of Jordan....
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/11/27/ap/world/mainD8LLMSGG0.shtml
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Editor - 19:54:00 11-27-06
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| Insurgents target oil sources, cause massive infernos |
Insurgents Monday targeted key oil sites in Iraq, firing mortar rounds into an oil distribution center in northern Iraq and bombing a pipeline in a southern suburb of Baghdad, Iraqi officials said. The attack on the oil distribution center triggered a massive fire that halted the flow of crude oil to Iraq's largest refinery, a Kirkuk police official said. The attack happened around 6:30 p.m. (10:30 a.m. ET) in Baiji, which is about 15 miles (25 km) northwest of Kirkuk, the police official said. Iraqi army and civil defense personnel were still on the scene hours later trying to put out the fire. Smoke from the blaze could been seen from miles away. The refinery in Baiji has a daily production level of about 8.5 million liters of gasoline, 7.5 million liters of diesel and 6.5 million liters of white oil. ...
http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/11/27/iraq.main/index.html?eref=rss_world
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Editor - 19:52:00 11-27-06
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| NBC Deems Iraq To Be In 'Civil War' Network Says Sectarian Violence Fits Definition Of Civil War; L.A. Times Also Uses Term |
NBC News and MSNBC broke away from the pack of mainstream media and decided to use the term "civil war" to describe current fighting in Iraq. Over the weekend, the Los Angeles Times became one of the first newspapers to use the term "civil war" without a qualifier. "Apparently the utter chaos and carnage of the past week has finally convinced some to use 'civil war' without apology," Editor & Publisher reported. Early Monday morning, Matt Lauer on the "Today" show bluntly laid out NBC News' decision to freely use the term "civil war," although the White House has consistently rejected claims that Iraq's sectarian violence had deteriorated into a civil war. ...
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/11/27/iraq/main2209960.shtml
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Editor - 19:18:00 11-27-06
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| Iraq Diplomacy Heats Up With Meetings |
Iraq's president turned to Iran on Monday for help to stem the bloodshed, and Iraqi officials said talks this week between President Bush and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki will focus on giving Iraqis more control so U.S. forces can withdraw."We are in dire need of Iran's help in establishing security and stability in Iraq," Iran's state-run television quoted Iraqi President Jalal Talabani as saying after he met with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Tehran.The increased pace of diplomacy comes as a bipartisan U.S. panel headed by former Secretary of State James A. Baker III and former Rep. Lee Hamilton is expected to put forth recommendations soon to the White House on alterations to Iraq policy. Seeking help from Iran and Syria was believed to be among the Iraq Study Group's proposal following American elections and calls for a speedy U.S. withdrawal....
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/11/27/ap/world/mainD8LLN6700.shtml
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Editor - 19:15:00 11-27-06
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