Global Policy Forum

Iraqi President Jalal Talabani said on Tuesday that Iraq will not set a timetable for a withdrawal of U.S. troops, backing away from his published remarks that the United States could withdraw as many as 50,000 troops by the end of the year. Talabani, speaking at a joint news conference with U.S. President George W. Bush, said however he hoped that by the end of 2006, Iraqi security forces would be strong enough to start taking over from "many" U.S. troops.

"We will set no timetable for withdrawal, Mr. President. A timetable will help the terrorists, will encourage them that they could defeat the superpower of the world and the Iraqi people," Talabani said in remarks that aligned him with Bush's often-stated view that setting a withdrawal deadline would only send a green light to the insurgency in Iraq. "We hope that by the end of 2006, our security forces are up to the level of taking responsibility from many American troops, with complete agreement with Americans," he said.

Talabani had said in an interview published in The Washington Post on Tuesday that the United States could withdraw as many as 50,000 troops from Iraq by the end of the year because there are enough Iraqi forces ready to begin taking control of parts of the country. Talabani said in the interview he would discuss reductions in U.S. forces during the meeting with Bush and that he thought the United States could pull some troops out immediately.

Bush, facing waning support at home for the Iraq war, has repeatedly rejected setting a timetable for withdrawal, saying only that as Iraqi security forces assume more control, U.S. forces will be able to pull out. Nearly 1,900 U.S. troops have been killed since the March 2003 invasion of Iraq, where a violent insurgency persists. There are 140,900 American troops there and the U.S. military plans to increase this by up to 2,000 troops before an Oct. 15 referendum on the country's new constitution.

FALLING APPROVAL RATINGS

Bush's public approval ratings have dropping to new lows amid strong criticism of the government's handling of devastating Hurricane Katrina, but they had been slipping before the storm because of growing worries about the Iraq war.

"Our objective is to defeat the enemies of a free Iraq, and we're working to prepare more Iraqi forces to join the fight," Bush said at a White House news conference where he and Talabani complimented each other warmly on their commitment to building democracy in Iraq. "As Iraqis stand up, Americans will stand down," he said.

Bush also reiterated strong words against Syria, which the United States accuses of allowing foreign fighters to cross into Iraq, saying Damascus was isolating itself. "The Syrian leader must understand we take his lack of action seriously," Bush said, adding Syria was going to become more isolated by not cooperating with the Iraqi government on security and by not being "fully transparent" about Lebanon. The United States accuses Syria of complicity in the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, and of failing to withdraw all of its intelligence officials from Lebanon, as required by the United Nations.

Bush said he would discuss Syria with allies, including during this month's U.N. General Assembly meeting in New York. "Syria must be a focus of getting them to change their behavior, particularly as it regards to democracy and trying to prevent democracies from emerging," he said. The U.S. ambassador to Iraq, Zalmay Khalilzad, said on Monday that "our patience is running out with Syria" on Iraq.