. Military Space News .




.
IRAQ WARS
Obama announces Iraq troop pullout by end-2011
by Staff Writers
Washington (AFP) Oct 21, 2011

Top US senator backs Obama Iraq move
Washington (AFP) Oct 21, 2011 - US Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Friday he fully backed President Barack Obama's decision to withdraw all US forces from Iraq by the end of the year and played down worries about Iran.

"I fully support the president," the Democratic lawmaker told reporters on a conference call, saying the White House had briefed him on the decision in a telephone call earlier in the day.

Reid -- who drew fire in April 2007 for saying of Iraq that "this war is lost" -- said the United States was "keeping a real close eye on Iran" and would be "well equipped" to do so even after the withdrawal.

Iran was "way behind (the) times," he said, warning leaders in Tehran that the storm of "Arab Spring" pro-democracy movements that have swept aside authoritarian regimes in the Middle East this year would soon reach them.

"They should be aware that the spring that hit all of that part of the world is about to hit them," he said.

Reid's comments came after Obama announced the full withdrawal of troops as talks between the two sides to agree on keeping a small number of US troops in Iraq after the end of 2011 failed.

The move represents the fulfillment of a central promise of Obama's 2008 election campaign, and came as Washington sought to also draw down the size of its garrison in Afghanistan.


President Barack Obama said Friday all US troops will leave Iraq by the end of the year, ending a long war which cleaved deep political divides and estranged the United States from its allies.

The decision came after Iraq failed to agree to legal immunity for a small residual force the United States had hoped to keep in the country to train the army and counter the influence of neighboring Iran, officials said.

After nearly nine years, the deaths of more than 4,400 US troops, tens of thousands of Iraqis and the expenditure of hundreds of billions of dollars, Obama said the last American soldier would leave with his head held high.

"Today I can report that, as promised, the rest of our troops in Iraq will come home by the end of the year. After nearly nine years, America's war in Iraq will be over," Obama said at the White House.

"I can say that our troops in Iraq will definitely be home for the holidays," said Obama, who rose to power in opposing the unpopular Iraq war and pledged as a presidential candidate to withdraw all US troops.

Obama's predecessor George W. Bush invaded Iraq in 2003, arguing that its then leader Saddam Hussein was endangering the world with weapons of mass destruction programs. After Saddam was toppled, such arms were never found.

US troops soon became embroiled in a bitter insurgency, swelled by incoming Al-Qaeda fighters, and the tide of the war only turned when now retired General David Petraeus convinced Bush to mount a troop surge strategy.

Obama made the announcement after holding a video conference with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, which US officials said included a moving tribute by the Iraqi leader to US troops who died in his country.

US defense officials said talks on a future US military mission had collapsed over the question of legal protections for American troops.

"That is a red line for us," said one official, who spoke on condition of anonymity."

Obama said that despite the failure, US defense officials would still seek ways to help train Iraqi forces, as they do for many other nations.

The president's announcement to end the war in Iraq fulfilled a central promise of his 2008 election campaign, which took place at a time when the Iraq war was still a painful fault line in US politics.

It also came after his credentials as commander-in-chief, bolstered by the killing of Osama bin Laden and top Al-Qaeda suspects, were further enhanced by the death of Moamer Kadhafi after a NATO mission in support of Libyan rebels.

But Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney accused Obama of presiding over an "astonishing failure to secure an orderly transition in Iraq" which put at risk victories won through the sacrifice of American soldiers.

"The unavoidable question is whether this decision is the result of a naked political calculation or simply sheer ineptitude in negotiations with the Iraqi government," he said.

"The American people deserve to hear the recommendations that were made by our military commanders in Iraq."

The US withdrawal provokes a number of questions about Iraq's future, including:

-- Are the Iraqi military and security forces up to the job of safeguarding security gains made over recent years?

-- How will Iran seek to expand its influence in Iraqi politics?

-- Is Iraq's fledgling political system robust enough to survive?

-- Will disputes between Kurdistan and Baghdad drive a deeper wedge between the autonomous region and the central government?

Obama administration officials declined to say whether the war had been worthwhile.

"History is going to have to judge that," said Vice President Joe Biden's national security advisor Tony Blinken, who argued that vibrant politics in Iraq would be part of the US legacy.

Maliki, who Obama invited to the White House in December, said in a brief statement that he and Obama were on the same page on the withdrawal.

"The two points of view of the two leaders were the same, of the necessity of beginning a new phase of strategic relations after carrying out the withdrawal at the specified date at the end of the year," he said.

The 39,000 remaining US troops in Iraq must withdraw by the end of the year under an accord between the two countries reached during the Bush administration.

Obama placed the withdrawal from Iraq in the context of efforts to transfer responsibility for security to Afghan forces and the stepped-up US battle against Al-Qaeda in Yemen and Pakistani tribal areas.

"I would note that the end of war in Iraq reflects a larger transition. The tide of war is receding," he said.

Related Links
Iraq: The first technology war of the 21st century




.
.
Get Our Free Newsletters Via Email
...
Buy Advertising Editorial Enquiries




US war in Iraq marked by blunders, setbacks
Washington (AFP) Oct 21, 2011 - President Barack Obama on Friday announced all US troops would leave Iraq by year's end, after a nearly nine-year mission that was plagued by strategic blunders and a notorious prisoner abuse scandal.

Here are key moments and decisions that helped define the US war:

2003

March 20: The United States invades Iraq with a small ground force of roughly 120,000, despite concerns from top commanders that several hundred thousand troops would be required.

President George W. Bush's defense secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, resists sending two additional divisions to contain violence immediately after the regime falls.

But he eventually has to deploy tens of thousands of reinforcements in the face of sectarian bloodshed and a growing insurgency. Military officers later blamed Rumsfeld for failing to take into account the challenges of maintaining security after the fall of the regime.

May 1: Bush announces the end of major combat operations in front of a "Mission Accomplished" banner aboard an aircraft carrier. But violence steadily escalates, with roadside bombs taking a terrible toll on Iraqis and American troops.

May 23: US special envoy L. Paul Bremer issues a decree disbanding the Iraqi military, in a bid to counter Saddam Hussein's loyalists in the Baath party. But the move is blamed for feeding an insurgency with bitter, unemployed and armed Baathists.

Bremer's decision takes many by surprise in the military and the White House. Pre-war plans had called for dissolving only elite Republican Guard units while retaining much of the 300,000-strong army. By the summer, US-led coalition troops are fighting large numbers of former Iraqi army soldiers.

2004:

April 28: Photographs of US forces humiliating and abusing inmates at Abu Ghraib prison cause worldwide outrage, severely damaging the US image in Muslim countries. No prison sentences are handed down to senior commanders in the case.

2007:

January 10: In an attempt to turn the tide, Bush orders a "surge" of 30,000 additional troops despite mounting public opposition to the war at home and high casualties.

The "surge" strategy is led by a new commander, General David Petraeus -- an impassioned advocate of counter-insurgency tactics that are embraced across the armed forces.

The influx of troops coincides with a backlash among Sunni tribes -- dubbed the "Sunni awakening" -- against Al-Qaeda-linked fighters and their brutal attacks on civilians.

The number of roadside bombs and insurgent attacks declines dramatically over the next two years. In Washington, Petraeus is credited by many lawmakers with rescuing the war effort but the legacy of the surge remains open to debate.

2008

November 27: Iraq's parliament ratifies a security agreement that calls for US troops to withdraw from the country by the end of 2011.

2011

October 21: Obama announces that US forces, numbering around 39,000, would be withdrawn by the end of the year, after a nearly nine-year campaign and 4,400 American fatalities.



.

. Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle



IRAQ WARS
Obama foes blast Iraq withdrawal amid Iran worries
Washington (AFP) Oct 21, 2011
President Barack Obama's conservative critics on Friday blasted his announcement that all US troops will leave Iraq by year's end, citing worries US archnemesis Iran will fill the vacuum. Republican Senator John McCain, Obama's rival for the White House in 2008, described the news as a "consequential failure" for Obama as well as Iraq's leaders after talks broke down on leaving a small US fo ... read more


IRAQ WARS
Aerostat system detects cruise missiles and supports engagement

Raytheon Successfully Test Fires First New-Build Patriot Missile

NATO missile shield 'not targeted at anyone': Spain

THAAD Weapon System Achieves Intercept of Two Targets at Pacific Missile Range Facility

IRAQ WARS
U.S. aid to help find Libyan missiles

Philippines unfazed by Taiwan Spratlys missile plan

El-Op tunes C-Music to protect airliners

US team seeking missing missiles in Libya

IRAQ WARS
Computer virus did not target US drone fleet: general

US Army to fly 'kamikaze' drones

Raytheon Aims to Integrate STM on Light-Attack Aircraft

Miscommunication caused US drone deaths: report

IRAQ WARS
First MEADS Battle Manager Begins Integration Testing in the United States

Elbit Establishes Israeli MOD Comms Equipment Supply Upgrade and Maintenance Project

Boeing FAB-T Demonstrates High-Data-Rate Communications with AEHF Satellite Test Terminal

NRL TacSat-4 Launches to Augment Communications Needs

IRAQ WARS
Supacat announces Australian partners

Boeing Completes Delivery of RAAF Super Hornets Ahead of Schedule

US Army and LockMart Demonstrate Multi-Sensor Situational Awareness Technology

Canada to spend $1 bln to upgrade armored vehicles

IRAQ WARS
Eurocopter aims for S. Korean contracts

Thales to upgrade Australia's Steyr rifles

Secret agent tells Bout trial of weapons list

Brazil's C295s achieve milestone

IRAQ WARS
Panetta backs developing military ties with Indonesia

Panetta says US committed to being Pacific power

India PM concedes 'problems' in China relations

China not seeking to top US: Lee Kuan Yew

IRAQ WARS
Boeing and BAE Systems to Develop Integrated Directed Energy Weapon for US Navy


.

The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2011 - Space Media Network. AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement