Drawdown begins August 2010.

Linkee

Very interesting speech this morning by President Obama. I, for one, think it's time and past for the Iraqi's to take over management of their own country.

This isn't a total drawdown, some 50 thousand troops will remain in country for some time after August of 2010.

With the improvement of the situation this seems a good idea, and one who's time has come.

Thoughts?

I think this is a best-case plan. A hasty withdrawal is always a bad idea and staying forever is not a good idea. I think two years is sufficient time for the military to wrap up whatever it intends to do. My guess is, for the country as a whole, two years will go by very quickly.

As for the troops that remain, as long as they're not actively engaging in combat, its all good.

reply to post by sweatmonicaIdo


I tend to agree. During the campaign, I seem to recall that Mr. Obama pledged that within the first 15 months of his administration the troops would be gone...I'm glad to see that he's willing to listen to his generals and advisors.

The situation has improved dramatically, from all accounts, in all but a few areas of Iraq. The Iraqi security forces are, again from all accounts, improving almost daily. So it's time to begin a drawdown of our force commitment. No reason to do it too quickly though. The improvement we're seeing could be less than permanent...