WASHINGTON — Gen. David Petraeus said Thursday that he is likely to recommend further troop reductions in Iraq but won’t promise more details until fall — timing that plunges the four-star Army general into the heart of the presidential election.
The fall assessment would come at a critical time in both American and Iraqi politics. U.S. voters likely will be deciding between a Republican candidate committed to keeping troops in Iraq as long as Petraeus and other ground commanders say is necessary, and a Democratic challenger who supports the withdrawal of forces.
At the same time, Iraq will be headed into its much-anticipated provincial elections, which U.S. officials have described as a crucial step in building national reconciliation by increasing participation by the Sunni minority.
Petraeus said conditions on the ground will still dictate his decision. But by September, when he is slated to assume control of U.S. Central Command, “my sense is that I will be able to make a recommendation at that time for some further reductions,” he said.
Petraeus cautioned that he was not implying that that means a particular brigade or major combat formation.
“But I do believe there will be certain assets that, as we are already looking at the picture right now, we’ll be able to recommend can be either redeployed or not deployed to the theater in the fall,” he said.
In recent months, Petraeus has helped to tame growing opposition to the war in Congress by providing measured assessments of progress and warning that an exodus of U.S. troops would result in chaos.
That unflappable style was on display again Thursday in a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing to confirm him for the Central Command post.
In a speech at Fort Bragg, N.C., President Bush said progress in Iraq was undeniable and that “we are on our way to victory.”
He also said he looked forward to hearing what his generals would recommend, but he didn’t tip his hand as to what he wants to hear.
“My message to our commanders is you will have all the troops, you will have all the resources you need to win in Iraq,” Bush said at the Army base, where he was speaking to 17,000 paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division.
