The US and Britain are planning to pull all their troops out of Iraq by the spring of next year, two British newspapers reported yesterday, quoting unnamed senior defense ministry sources.
The Sunday Telegraph said the planned pull-out followed an acceptance by the two governments that the presence of foreign troops in Iraq was now a large obstacle to securing peace.
"The British government is understood to be the driving force behind the withdrawal plan but all 24 coalition members are likely to welcome the move, given the growing international unpopularity of the war," the Telegraph said.
12 months
The Sunday Mirror newspaper also reported on the planned withdrawal of US and UK troops, saying it would happen within 12 months.
The Bush administration and Pentagon have stated repeatedly there is no timetable for withdrawing troops from Iraq, and a US military spokesman repeated that on Saturday.
"We've made no such plans," said Pentagon spokesman Major Paul Swiergosz.
A defense ministry spokesman in London rejected the reports, saying the British government had not altered its position set out by Defense Secretary John Reid on Feb. 7. Reid said then that the "time was approaching" when coalition forces could begin leaving Iraq, but refused to give any detailed timetable.
There are currently about 135,000 US soldiers and Marines and about 8,500 British troops in Iraq. The full US-led coalition numbers around 160,000.
South Korean troops
Yesterday, South Korea, which has the third-largest number of troops, announced that a planned one-third cut in its military in Iraq -- from 3,200 troops to 2,300 -- will begin next month, according to Major General Jung Seung-jo, chief of the South Korean troops stationed in the Kurdish region of Irbil in northern Iraq, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported.
The Defense Ministry in Seoul confirmed Jung's remarks.
Italy, which has the fourth-largest contingent in Iraq, has said it plans to pull out this year.
Gradual pullout
US and Iraqi officials have said frequently in the past that foreign troops will be gradually withdrawn from Iraq once Iraqi security forces are capable of guaranteeing security for the 27 million population.
US and British troops have trained 230,000 Iraqis to take on roles in the police force and the Iraqi army, although both are currently incapable of securing the nation on their own.
The US military withdrew around 15,000 troops after Iraq had successful elections in December for its first full-term parliament since the overthrow of former president Saddam Hussein in 2003.
The recent sectarian violence in Iraq has provoked fears that the country is on the brink of civil war, a scenario that could greatly complicate the role of foreign troops.
also see stories:
UK faces military overstretch crisis: report
Iraqi PM faces mounting pressure to stand down
In his National Day Rally speech on Sunday, Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (黃循財) quoted the Taiwanese song One Small Umbrella (一支小雨傘) to describe his nation’s situation. Wong’s use of such a song shows Singapore’s familiarity with Taiwan’s culture and is a perfect reflection of exchanges between the two nations, Representative to Singapore Tung Chen-yuan (童振源) said yesterday in a post on Facebook. Wong quoted the song, saying: “As the rain gets heavier, I will take care of you, and you,” in Mandarin, using it as a metaphor for Singaporeans coming together to face challenges. Other Singaporean politicians have also used Taiwanese songs
NORTHERN STRIKE: Taiwanese military personnel have been training ‘in strategic and tactical battle operations’ in Michigan, a former US diplomat said More than 500 Taiwanese troops participated in this year’s Northern Strike military exercise held at Lake Michigan by the US, a Pentagon-run news outlet reported yesterday. The Michigan National Guard-sponsored drill involved 7,500 military personnel from 36 nations and territories around the world, the Stars and Stripes said. This year’s edition of Northern Strike, which concluded on Sunday, simulated a war in the Indo-Pacific region in a departure from its traditional European focus, it said. The change indicated a greater shift in the US armed forces’ attention to a potential conflict in Asia, it added. Citing a briefing by a Michigan National Guard senior
CHIPMAKING INVESTMENT: J.W. Kuo told legislators that Department of Investment Review approval would be needed were Washington to seek a TSMC board seat Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) yesterday said he received information about a possible US government investment in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and an assessment of the possible effect on the firm requires further discussion. If the US were to invest in TSMC, the plan would need to be reviewed by the Department of Investment Review, Kuo told reporters ahead of a hearing of the legislature’s Economics Committee. Kuo’s remarks came after US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick on Tuesday said that the US government is looking into the federal government taking equity stakes in computer chip manufacturers that
CLAMPING DOWN: At the preliminary stage on Jan. 1 next year, only core personnel of the military, the civil service and public schools would be subject to inspections Regular checks are to be conducted from next year to clamp down on military personnel, civil servants and public-school teachers with Chinese citizenship or Chinese household registration, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. Article 9-1 of the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例) stipulates that Taiwanese who obtain Chinese household registration or a Chinese passport would be deprived of their Taiwanese citizenship and lose their right to work in the military, public service or public schools, it said. To identify and prevent the illegal employment of holders of Chinese ID cards or
RSS