Bush to withdraw 4,000 Iraq troops

George W. Bush plans to withdraw 4,000 troops from Iraq before the end of his presidency as the Pentagon starts to shift its focus to Afghanistan, the White House said on Monday.

The US will withdraw 3,400 combat support troops in addition to a battalion of marines over the next few months, according to an advance transcript of a speech Mr Bush gives on Tuesday to the National Defence University. Under the plan, the Pentagon will also not replace an army combat brigade – about 3,500 soldiers – that is expected to return from Iraq in February.

While he held out the possibility of further cuts next year, that decision will fall to his successor, who assumes office in January.

“If the progress in Iraq continues to hold, General Petraeus [the US commander in Iraq] and our military leaders believe additional reductions will be possible in the first half of 2009,” said Mr Bush.

In a recent interview with the Financial Times, Gen Petraeus said it was feasible that US combat troops could leave Baghdad by next July. That would coincide with a long-term security agreement being negotiated between Washington and Baghdad, which is expected to call for US combat forces to pull back from Iraqi cities by next summer.

The latest reduction in US forces comes as Iraq continues to see a significant decline in violence.

The number of US and Iraqi casualties has dropped dramatically since early 2007 when Mr Bush announced he was sending a “surge” of 30,000 additional forces to Iraq to help tackle the escalating sectarian violence.

“While the progress in Iraq is still fragile and reversible . . . there now appears to be a degree of durability to the gains we have made,” Mr Bush was expected to tell the National Defence University audience.

While announcing reductions in Iraq, Mr Bush said the Pentagon planned to send additional forces to Afghanistan.

The move would be part of a “quiet surge” to deal with the increased attacks from Taliban and al-Qaeda militants.

US commanders in Afghanistan have requested an additional 10,000 troops to help quell the insurgency, but sending additional forces has been contingent on pulling soldiers and marines out of Iraq.

The US is also launching an initiative to double the size of the Afghan national army over the next five years.

While Mr Bush made no mention of funding in his remarks, the US hopes Nato allies can help pay some of the cost of training and equipping these additional forces.

Mr Bush added that Pakistan also had a responsibility to clamp down on extremists operating inside its borders with Afghanistan.