Envoy: US troops to be in Iraq into '09 (can't make any promises if a Dem is the next Pres)

[maddezmom]

Source: AP

WASHINGTON - President Bush's top diplomat in Iraq said Friday that the U.S. plans to keep combat troops there into 2009, seen as the tipping point for establishing the nation's long-term security, and he offered no deadline for a full withdrawal.

Ambassador Ryan Crocker told The Associated Press that he can't make any promises if, as the Democratic candidates have signaled, the next president pulls forces out faster or in greater numbers.

Crocker said America remains "a center of gravity" in Iraq almost five years after invasion, and that violence and political development both hinge to a considerable degree on whether U.S. forces remain there.

Crocker said he and Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. military commander in Iraq, would make the best of any change in plans ordered from the top.



Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080201/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/us_iraq_crocker

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Quotes from AP interview of Ryan Crocker By The Associated Press

Excerpts from AP interview with Ryan Crocker, U.S. ambassador to Iraq:

On how long U.S. combat forces must stay in Iraq and possible long-term presence.

"Certainly into next year but how far I couldn't say. But I think that's going to be on the short end of this spectrum. I could see a longer-term desire on the part of both countries for a U.S. presence to do training and equipping roles and possibly depending on what we both work out, having that presence serve as a sort of assurance to Iraq about its own security."

On whether the Bush administration still believes that sustainable security in Iraq can be achieved by the summer of 2009:

"That's still the direction of our timing. Yes, that's still achievable."

On discussions with Iran, expected to resume in coming weeks, to halt its support for Shiite insurgent groups in Iraq:

more:http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080201/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/us_iraq_crocker_quotes;_ylt=AmEm5mBXQ5y4qM5uDIjYhW0D5gcF

[jimshoes]

1. I would hope they both get their

pink slips on Jan. 20, 2009.