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Sources: Bush advised to delay troop cuts in Iraq

Sources: Bush advised to delay troop cuts in Iraq

WASHINGTON -- President Bush's top defense advisers have recommended that he maintain 15 combat brigades in Iraq until the end of the year, contrary to expectations that the improved security in Iraq would allow for quicker cuts, The Associated Press has learned.

Military leaders told the AP that the closely held plan would send a small Marine contingent to Afghanistan in November to replace one of two Marine units expected to head home then.

If Mr. Bush follows the recommendations, he would delay any additional buildup in Afghanistan until early next year, when another brigade would be deployed there, instead of to Iraq. That move would cut the number of brigades in Iraq to 14 in February.

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The plan is aimed at taking advantage of security gains in Iraq to bolster the military effort in Afghanistan, where violence is on the rise. Several senior military and defense officials described the recommendations on condition of anonymity, because the plan has not been made public.

They also acknowledged that the plan is a compromise since Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, argued to maintain the current force levels in Iraq -- about 146,000 troops, including 15 combat brigades and thousands of support forces -- through June.

Mr. Bush is weighing the recommendations; in the past, he has largely accepted the military's advice. If he adopts them, it would be left to the next president to execute further troop reductions in Iraq and a greater buildup in Afghanistan. Mr. Bush's term ends in January.

Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, the Democratic presidential nominee, has advocated pulling all U.S. combat forces out of Iraqi within 16 months of taking office. His Republican rival, Arizona Sen. John McCain, has said he would rely on the advice of U.S. military commanders to determine the timing and pace of troop reductions. Both candidates have said more troops are needed in Afghanistan.

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Mr. Obama yesterday said the escalation of U.S. troops in Iraq, which he had opposed, has succeeded in reducing violence "beyond our wildest dreams." But Iraq still has failed to achieve the political reconciliation and self-sufficiency that is required, he said, and he vowed to withdraw U.S. troops and end the war.

Republicans repeatedly have accused Mr. Obama of denying the military progress being made in Iraq and of wanting to pull out when victory is within reach.

Campaigning in Pennsylvania, Mr. Obama was more effusive than usual in describing the reduction in violence that resulted largely from Mr. Bush's decision to send thousands of more troops to Iraq in 2007. But he stuck to his assertion that "the surge" has not led to the political reconciliation among quarreling factions that was its larger goal.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, are to testify Wednesday about Iraq to Congress.

Pentagon press secretary Geoff Morrell last evening said Mr. Gates and Adm. Mullen had given Mr. Bush their recommendation about troop levels this week, while also presenting the views of Gen. Petraeus and other top military leaders.

First Published: September 5, 2008, 1:30 p.m.

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