US pair defend strategy on Iraq

Tuesday, 11 September 2007

The two leading US figures in Iraq have repeated their contention in Congress that the troop build-up in the country is working.

Military commander Gen David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker are facing a second day of testimony before a Congressional panel in Washington.

Their questioners now include senators seeking the Democratic presidential nomination - all opposed to the war.

One, Sen Joe Biden, said the "surge" had failed to lead to political peace.

He said the build-up, which began in February, was "a stopgap that will not prevent chaos" and concluded: "We should stop the surge and start bringing our troops home."

The senators questioning Gen Petraeus and Mr Crocker also include presidential candidates Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and Christopher Dodd.

Although all are opponents of the war, they differ on how the US should withdraw.

BBC security correspondent Rob Watson says the senators' questions will be watched carefully by the party's grassroots supporters, where opinion is running strongly against the continued presence of US troops.

During Tuesday's testimony Gen Petraeus again insisted that the increase in US troop levels had reduced the violence.

Mr Crocker, for his part, emphasised signs of economic progress, pointing to a projected 6% growth for the Iraqi economy in 2007.

During Monday's joint hearing of the House of Representatives Armed Services and Foreign Affairs committees, he said violence had declined since more US troops were sent to Iraq this year.

"Security incidents", including sectarian violence, had declined since the start of the surge, he said.

He added that about 30,000 troops could be withdrawn by the middle of next year.

Iraqi warning

On Monday Gen Petraeus and Mr Crocker's testimonies were heavily criticised by some members of the congressional panel.

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Tom Lantos said the surge was a strategic failure and that it was time for troops to leave.

"We need to get out of Iraq, for that country's sake and for our own. It is time to go," he said.

Democrat Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey told the BBC Gen Petraeus was a "mouthpiece" of the White House, a position that he has flatly denied.

But Republican Duncan Hunter defended the general, saying US progress had led to gains by Iraqi security forces, including an army that was "beginning to emerge as a professional force".

Iraqi National Security Adviser Mowaffaq al-Rubaie praised the US' "enormous sacrifice" and predicted a reduced combat role for US troops.

But he cautioned against a quick US withdrawal, saying Iraq needed coalition soldiers until its own security forces were self-reliant.

A record 168,000 US troops are now in Iraq after 30,000 arrived in the surge between February and June.