Blair Announces Withdrawal of 1,700 British Soldiers from Iraq

Many say Britain's reduction of their forces from 7,100 to about 4,700 over the next six months marks the beginning of a new political era, and the end of the war in Iraq.

Photo courtesy: labour.org.uk

(LONDON) - British media sources say Prime Minister Tony Blair is expected to announce a large-scale troop pullout from Iraq Wednesday. The BBC reports that 1,500 troops are expected to be withdrawn by this summer, while other sources put the number more in the neighborhood of 1,700. Another group of the same size is expected to be pulled by the end of the year. At this point, Britain has 7,100 troops in Iraq.

All are expected to be out of Iraq and home by the end of 2008. MSNBC has dubbed the story the "Coalition of the Leaving."

As Britain announces the withdrawal from Iraq, Washington is in the process of sending 21,500 more troops there as part of our nation's new strategy. While political insiders say it is anything but good news for the White House, U.S. President George Bush was optimistic about the planned move.

"President Bush sees this as a sign of success and what is possible for us once we help the Iraqis deal with the sectarian violence in Baghdad," Gordon Johndroe, spokesman for the White House National Security Council, said.

"While the United Kingdom is maintaining a robust force in southern Iraq, we're pleased that conditions in Basra have improved sufficiently that they are able to transition more control to the Iraqis. The United States shares the same goal of turning responsibility over to the Iraqi Security Forces and reducing the number of American troops in Iraq," Johndroe said.

Many say Britain's reduction of their forces from 7,100 to about 4,700 over the next six months marks the beginning of a new political era, and the end of the war in Iraq.