By DPA
Washington : US President George W. Bush will during a prime-time televised address Thursday announce withdrawal of 30,000 US troops from Iraq by next July, the Washington Post reported citing government sources.
The announcement will endorse proposals from Washington’s top military commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus, who in testimony to Congress this week outlined the achievements of major troop surge launched in January and recommended cutting troop numbers in Iraq from 160,000 to “pre-surge” levels of 130,000.
The president will make the announcement during 9pm address Thursday evening (0100 GMT Friday), the newspaper reported Wednesday. Bush is also expected to make clear that further troop reductions will hinge on progress on the ground in Iraq.
Petraeus had recommended the withdrawal of 30,000 troops from Iraq during his testimony to a congressional hearing along with US Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker on Monday and Tuesday. The general however refused to commit to further reductions until he can assess conditions in Iraq in March 2008.
The Democrats, who are in majority in Congress, have however called for all 160,000 US troops in Iraq to be withdrawn by the end of April.
Democrat House Speaker Nancy Pelosi criticized the withdrawal plan as not far-reaching enough and said it was “insulting the intelligence” of the American people.
Pelosi said she told Bush that he was essentially endorsing a 10-year “open-ended commitment,” the Post reported.
Petraeus had appealed during their testimony for more time and patience to allow the US complete its objectives in Iraq.
Leading Democrat senators however said they did not agree with the assessment that Iraq’s security situation had improved.
Iraqi President Nuri al-Maliki is now reported to be personally prepared to convince Bush’s opponents that the US military presence and Iraqi government strategy in Iraq are making gains.
Government-allied Baghdad daily al-Sabah reported Wednesday that al-Maliki will meet with US lawmakers, including Democrats, on the sidelines of a Sep 21 UN donors’ conference he is scheduled to attend in New York.
During his visit al-Maliki aims to inform the US public that “the situation in Iraq is different in some aspects to how it is portrayed,” al-Sabah reported.