NYT: Commander Doesn't Expect More Foreign Troops in Iraq

[kskiska]

WASHINGTON, Sept. 25 — The commander of United States forces in the Persian Gulf said today that he was no longer counting on foreign troops to relieve American soldiers in Iraq early next year. A lack of foreign troops would require the Pentagon would have to send active-duty and National Guard soldiers to fill the gap.

The commander, Gen. John P. Abizaid, said he had until Wednesday to tell the Joint Chiefs of Staff whether sufficient allied forces would be available to replace American forces in Iraq.

But the administration's negotiations with allies to provide more troops have so far proved fruitless, and General Abizaid said that he could no longer assume there will be large-scale international support, and that the Pentagon had to begin deciding how to make up for the shortage of foreign troops.

"Since it doesn't look like we'll have a coalition brigade, we have no choice but to plan for American forces," General Abizaid told reporters after he testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee.

more…
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/26/international/middleeast/26MILI.html

[Sliverofhope]

1. So what happens now?

More of the same of what's happening until the 2004 elections? That's not a very positive picture.

[kskiska]

2. …and this, at the end:

Mr. Bremer acknowledged what American intelligence reports have been warning for weeks: that ordinary Iraqis are growing increasingly resentful of the American-led mission.

"The reality of foreign troops on the streets is starting to chafe," Mr. Bremer told the Senate panel. "Some Iraqis are beginning to regard us as occupiers and not as liberators."

[FlemingsGhost]

3. Guess he saw Bush's U.N. address, too.

Fear not, General.

Your Commander-in-Chief *IS* on top of the sex slavery issue that worries us all...

[The Magistrate]

4. Here Is The Difference, Sir

Between a professional and a political hack.

The politico may easily treat his desires and deceits as realities; the professional must assess what is actual.