Petraeus says U.S. troop levels can be cut
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The top U.S. commander in Iraq on Monday said the number of U.S. troops in Iraq could be cut by next summer to roughly 130,000, its level before this year's "surge" of 30,000 forces, without jeopardizing security improvements.
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Foreign troop levels in Iraq could drop to less than 100,000 by the end of 2008 if Iraq's own forces were ready and security threats had diminished, Iraq's national security adviser said on Wednesday.
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Commander of US forces in Iraq tells Congress that withdrawal to pre-surge levels would not jeopardise security.
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WASHINGTON -- The United States may be able to reduce its combat forces in Iraq by next spring if Iraq's own security forces continue to grow and improve, a senior American commander said yesterday.
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One day after President Bush announced a limited drawdown of U.S. troops from Iraq by next summer, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said yesterday that it might be possible to reduce U.S. forces there further over the course of next year, down to approximately 100,000 troops by the end of 2008.
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AL ASAD AIR BASE, Iraq  - President George W. Bush raised the prospect of troop cuts in Iraq after meeting top commanders at a desert air base on Monday but said any reduction would only be made from a position of strength.
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The United States will probably have more troops in Iraq this summer than it did before pouring in forces last year -- even after a planned drawdown, a U.S. general said on Friday.
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U.S. troop levels in Iraq will likely remain at the current number -- more than 140,000 -- through next spring, the senior U.S. commander in the Middle East said today.
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A U.S. commander in Iraq believes it would not be possible to withdraw troops from his region south and east of Baghdad by year's end. Army Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch said a pullout would be a "giant step backward."
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In a move that could portend a strategy change, the commander of U.S. forces in northern Iraq said Sunday he has proposed reducing his troop levels and shifting next year to missions focused less on direct combat.
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Defense secretary endorses the idea of pausing the drawdown of U.S. forces from Iraq this summer.
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America's outgoing No. 2 commander in Iraq said Tuesday that curbing unemployment and improving services would help reduce the violence in the country, warning that military muscle cannot win the war alone.
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A top American commander said the more than 140,000 soldiers now in Iraq are likely to be needed there at least until next spring.
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A pause in the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq after the current reduction is completed in July "makes sense," Defense Secretary Robert Gates told reporters in Baghdad today. Gates made his comments after meeting in Iraq with the top U.S. commander, Gen. David Petraeus.
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The top U.S. commander in Iraq told Congress today that the military objectives of the Bush administration's troop increase strategy in Iraq "are in large measure being met," and he forecast a reduction of U.S. forces "to pre-surge levels" without jeopardizing gains in the months ahead.
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Gen. David H. Petraeus, who will testify before Congress today, has recommended deferring decisions on reducing the main body of troops in Iraq.
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The United States may be able to reduce its troop levels in Iraq after the January elections if security improves and Iraqi government