IRAQ:PRESIDENT GEORGE Bush has punctured hopes of a big reduction in US troops in Iraq by announcing the withdrawal of just 8,000 troops by February and only a small troop increase for Afghanistan.
Although he acknowledged that the Taliban and al-Qaeda were posing more of a threat in Afghanistan, Mr Bush ordered only an extra marine battalion and army combat brigade, amounting to just a few thousand troops, into the country. He described the reinforcements as "a quiet surge".
In what will probably be his last big decision about the Iraq and Afghanistan wars that have defined his presidency, Mr Bush basically left a decision about deployments to the next president, who takes office on January 20th.
Barack Obama, the Democratic presidential candidate, described Mr Bush's moves as "modest" and "coming up short". He said Mr Bush had failed to recognise the urgency of the situation in Afghanistan because the new brigade was not due to arrive until February.
Mr Bush's speech to the National Defence University in Washington dashed speculation that he planned a huge reduction of US forces in Iraq before he left office so he could go out on a high note.
Mr Bush said there had been improvements in security in Iraq over the last year. "Here is the bottom line: while the enemy in Iraq is still dangerous, we have seized the offensive and Iraqi forces are becomingly increasingly capable of leading and winning the fight." He cited Anbar province, once one of the centres of unrest, as a success, with violence down 90 per cent, and said that violence in the country as a whole was at its lowest since spring 2004.
Mr Bush and the Republican presidential candidate, John McCain, would have liked to have seen tens of thousands of troops brought home. Mr Bush however was forced to rethink his plans after a briefing from the US commander in Iraq, Gen David Petraeus, that such a huge reduction would be premature and would endanger the improved security.
Gen Petraeus advocated keeping troops at the same level until June, but Adm Mike Mullen, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, said the risk posed by withdrawing some troops earlier than that was minimal.
Mr McCain had wanted significant reductions in order to blunt Mr Obama's pledge to pull all US combat troops out of Iraq within 16 months of becoming president.
Mr Obama has also said that Mr Bush and Mr McCain underestimate the threat posed by the Taliban and al-Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and has promised a significant reinforcement of US troops in Afghanistan.
There are 146,000 US troops in Iraq. - ( Guardianservice)