Petraeus On Odierno’s “We Could Start Leaving By Spring” Comment: Don’t Bet On It
YUSAFIYAH, Iraq - The top U.S. commander in Iraq yesterday backed off comments by his second-in-command that American troops could start pulling out of Iraq by next spring.
“I’m not making any predictions,” Gen. David Petraeus said yesterday, as roadside bombings claimed the lives of seven more U.S. troops, including four killed by a single blast outside Baghdad.
Lt. Gen. Ray Odierno said Friday that Iraqi forces were progressing well and could take greater responsibility for the country’s security by spring. “Potentially, we could have a decision to reduce our forces,” he said.
Petraeus, visiting a farming town south of Baghdad, was more cautious. He said he and Odierno would consult on reduce troop levels closer to September, when Petraeus is due to report on the surge’s effectiveness.
“It depends an awful lot on different factors out there - obviously how we’re doing in the security sector, how the Iraqis are doing, how much has been accomplished in a variety of different areas, and that’s what will determine what we take back,” Petraeus said.
He said he hopes there will be more progress soon. “We are keenly aware, again, of the so-called Washington-American clock, if you will, and the fact that that’s running more rapidly than is the Baghdad clock,” he said.
Last week, coalition forces began a major offensive - dubbed “Operation Arrowhead Ripper” - in Diyala province, where many insurgents have fled as a result of the security crackdown in Baghdad.
Petraeus said the operation is “on track” but that there is “a lot more work to be done.”
NY Daily News
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Petraeus is sandbagging. He’s got some major whup-AQ-ass in process and in mind, but wants it to be another “breathtaking” surprise. You get 2 guesses about whose air he intends to vacuum away!
Minimum acceptable score is 2/2.
June 24th, 2007 at 3:59 amHis second-in-command misspoke. He’s pandering to the left in Washington. Petraeus probably isn’t done yet. There is more whoop-ass to be handed out to Ali-Baba.
I’d love to be a fly-on-the-wall in Petraeus’s HQ right about now. What devious plan is he about to hatch?
I’m being facetious here.
So far I think that Gen Petraeus and all the rest of the “team” has earned a raise.
Lt. Gen. Ray Odierno on the other hand, should consult with his boss before jumping the gun. Might be time for a little peer-to-peer counseling session?
June 24th, 2007 at 5:17 amI bet Petraeus is going to pince the enemy by surging downwards from Turkey and making the Syrian border tight clad. This seems an obvious military strategy to me. Don’t let Al-Qaida exfiltrate.
June 24th, 2007 at 4:42 pmLike I posted on another article, the windbags in DC have already declared “the surge has failed.” I can’t tell you how much this irritates me.
June 25th, 2007 at 7:16 am