President Says Iraq War Will End Next Year

(WASHINGTON D.C.) - President Obama and Vice President Biden say they will responsibly end the war in Iraq to renew the nation's military strength, dedicate more resources to the fight against the Taliban and al Qaeda in Afghanistan, and invest in the national economy. They say the Obama-Biden plan will help bring success in Iraq by transitioning to Iraqi control of their country.

Obama spoke out against going to war in 2002 and warned of "an occupation of undetermined length, with undetermined costs, and undetermined consequences." He and Joe Biden say they are both fully committed to ending the war in Iraq.

The Administration says the exit from Iraq will require a lot of forethought, "as we were careless getting in" Obama said in a statement.

Obama says that immediately upon taking office, he will give his Secretary of Defense and military commanders a new mission in Iraq: ending the war.

"The removal of our troops will be responsible and phased, directed by military commanders on the ground and done in consultation with the Iraqi government. Military experts believe we can safely redeploy combat brigades from Iraq at a pace of 1 to 2 brigades a month -- which would remove all of them in 16 months. That would be the summer of 2010 -- more than 7 years after the war began."

Under the Obama-Biden plan, a residual force will remain in Iraq and in the region to conduct targeted counter-terrorism missions against al Qaeda in Iraq and protect American diplomatic and civilian personnel.

They will not build permanent bases in Iraq, plenty of which exist already, but will continue efforts to train and support the Iraqi security forces as long as Iraqi leaders move toward political reconciliation and away from sectarianism.

Obama and Biden say the U.S. must apply pressure on the Iraqi government to work toward real political accommodation.

"There is no military solution to Iraq’s political differences. Now is the time to press Iraq’s leaders to take responsibility for their future and to invest their oil revenues in their own reconstruction."

"A phased withdrawal will encourage Iraqis to take the lead in securing their own country and making political compromises, while the responsible pace of redeployment called for by the Obama-Biden plan offers more than enough time for Iraqi leaders to get their own house in order."

As the forces return home, the Administration says they will make sure to engage representatives from all levels of Iraqi society -- in and out of government -- to forge compromises on oil revenue sharing, the equitable provision of services, federalism, the status of disputed territories, new elections, aid to displaced Iraqis, and the reform of Iraqi security forces.

Barack Obama and Joe Biden plan to launch an aggressive diplomatic effort to reach a comprehensive compact on the stability of Iraq and the region.

They say this effort will involve all of Iraq’s neighbors -- including Iran and Syria, as suggested by the bi-partisan Iraq Study Group Report.

"This compact will aim to secure Iraq’s borders; keep neighboring countries from meddling inside Iraq; isolate al Qaeda; support reconciliation among Iraq’s sectarian groups; and provide financial support for Iraq’s reconstruction and development."

President Obama and Vice President Biden say America has both a moral obligation and a responsibility for security that demands we confront Iraq’s humanitarian crisis -- as more than five million Iraqis are refugees or are displaced inside their own country.

The Administration say they will form an international working group to address this crisis, and at least $2 billion to expand services to Iraqi refugees in neighboring countries, and ensure that Iraqis inside their own country can find sanctuary. They say they will also work with Iraqi authorities and the international community to hold accountable the perpetrators of potential war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. They will reserve the right to intervene militarily, with our international partners, to suppress potential genocidal violence within Iraq.

Obama and Biden believe it is vital that a Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) be reached so our troops have the legal protections and immunities they need. Any SOFA should be subject to Congressional review to ensure it has bipartisan support here at home.

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Vic March 2, 2009 4:13 pm (Pacific time)

I wonder if we would think we were better off if we had been invaded and Bush/Cheney hung, but with eleven million dead Americans in the process. (We have eleven times the population of Iraq so per capita, that would be the death toll so far) I wonder if we would think that was such a bargain? Of course the dead wouldnt get a chance to relate their opinions on the subject. No one misses Saddam, but I bet they wish they had the foreign invaders out of their country. Who would accept that ?

Michael March 2, 2009 12:13 pm (Pacific time)

It appears the majority of Iraqi's are happy that Saddam and his murderous regime is now just a bad memory. They are the ones who make the final conclusion on whether our invasion was better than what they previously lived under. Different cultures simply have different values which color their perspectives, along with the wide variety of tribes, including the Kurds in northern Iraq, we will probably hear many diffent assessments by these people(s). Being able to go vote for your candidate versus dealing with a murderous dictator and his sons, does not sound like a big contest to me.

stephen March 1, 2009 6:15 pm (Pacific time)

Cargill: my experience only comes from turning off the military complex owned television, and reading. Now they are telling fibs to get us to attack Iran. And amazing as it may seem, people will again support the lies. I call it, the battered wife syndrome. "he will get better, he didnt mean to do it, it wont happen again, he wont beat me anymore, he was drinking and he promised to quit drinking, he had a bad day etc friggin etc. I actully thought Cargills post was ok, but not about the surge. The same people who said it worked are the same people who lied to get us into Iraq. Besides that, cargill is ok with me.

Vic March 1, 2009 3:40 pm (Pacific time)

What is sad, Cargill..is that there are still apologists for this "war"...when do you think we will get those WMDs..you know..THE REASON WE ARE OVER THERE.This whole invasion, occupation and subsequent murder of over a million Iraqis was based on lies...you can polish that turd all you want, but it will never be an apple. We invaded a country that never even threatened us based on outright lies and deceptions. Any idiot with half a brain knows that..you dont have to have a "background in military tactics/strategy along with the multi-cultural dynamics of Iraq" to know when you have been lied to. The whole world knows it, yet there are a few die-hard Koolaid drinkers who like to forget the pretenses of this so-called war. Guess what, Cargill....we are the BAD guys..we are the torturers, the rapists, the murderers of families...now THAT is sad.

Cargill March 1, 2009 8:50 am (Pacific time)

Stephen what is your background in military tactics/strategy along with the multi-cultural dynamics of Iraq? There is a time for negotiation, but it is usually most successful when one side is weaker than the other and they both know it. You can have all the money in the world, but it means very little in a war zone that has minimal goods and services. The "surge", as the proverbial straw is what has minimized hostilities, which the on-ground professionals have so stated. At this time more Americans are bing murdered in our cities, and in an average year approx. 4 times more Americans are murdered than all those killed in both Iraq and Afghanistan since these conflicts began. Now that is sad.

ChrisJones February 28, 2009 2:54 pm (Pacific time)

We'll be out in 18 months or less huh? Where have we heard that before? (from bush like 4 or five times) So are we or are we not building the largest "us embassy" in the world (bigger than the vatican) in iraq still? (the same policy of the bush administration) How many troops will we have permanently stationed there? That's getting out huh?

stephen February 28, 2009 2:48 pm (Pacific time)

Democracy = those with the most money and guns, convince the 51%. Simple as that. The Republic however are fair laws that can be amended. Democracy is a prelude to tyranny. History is again repeating itself.

stephen February 28, 2009 1:23 pm (Pacific time)

The "surge" you mentioned, did not really work that well at all. What made the biggest difference in Iraq, is what Tim King wrote. We started paying Sunni's to not shoot us, instead shoot the other people. Tim King nailed it. Also, Iran was a major factor. They knew if they backed off, told the shiite leaders to back off, that eventually Iraq would get sick of the U.S. and would be friends with Iran. Which is now happening. I do not support Iran, but they seem to be making the better decisions.

Joesph February 28, 2009 11:56 am (Pacific time)

The Bush surge in Iraq worked so well that Obama's people have him doing the same tactic in Afghanistan. During Obama's recent meanering speech to a group of Marines, not once did he mention the word "democracy" and how our warriors brought this concept to Iraq and have made it into a working application as several national elections have been successfully held. Nor did he give credit where credit is due for the success of the surge. Of course neither Obama, Biden and his cabinet members have any direct military experience, his Chief of Staff, Rahm Emmanuel was in the Israeli military. I wonder why Rahm did not want to serve in the U.S. military?

stephen February 28, 2009 9:07 am (Pacific time)

It looks as though Afghanistan is next on the list. I hope obama knows that Afghanistan is not called the "graveyard of empires" for no reason.

Vic February 28, 2009 7:42 am (Pacific time)

"Residual force" ....Ummmm 50,000 troops is a residual force? It seems the big pull-out is getting watered down daily. Thats not what the American people voted for.

stephen February 28, 2009 7:21 am (Pacific time)

Seems like standard U.S. policy and procedures. With 737 U.S. military bases in 130 countries the U.S. continues to expand its empire. Many countries succumb to bribes, and sometimes even threats, so war is not necessary. Iraq was not one of those countries, so they had to be invaded. The last straw was when Saddam declined to trade using the dollar. Iraq now has the largest U.S. military base in the world. Some refer to it as the Vatican. 50,000 U.S. military will be stationed at the several bases in Iraq. Along with tens of thousands of military contractors (mercenaries). The financial collapse (which I believe was orchestrated), will very possibly bring in a world bank (says mainstream media). The efforts for global domination continues. While the U.S. collapses. Been reading my Bible more lately. :-)

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President Says Iraq War Will End Next Year

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