U.S. Army report warns against exit timetable

A U.S. Army study warns against announcing a timetable for the withdrawal of American troops from Iraq.

The study warns that such an announcement would bolster the Sunni insurgency and increase the prospect of civil war in Iraq. The report by the Army War College � which stressed that the document did not necessarily represent the views of the military or Defense Department � also dismissed hopes that Iraq would soon be ready to assume major security responsibilities.

"From the moment a timetable is announced, all Iraqis working with the U.S.-led coalition will calculate that U.S. protection is a declining asset, and they correspondingly will have to make a decision about how to safeguard themselves and their property," the report said. "Some may choose to establish links to the insurgents, while others may seek the protection of a militia."
On Wednesday, President George Bush outlined what he termed a U.S. strategy for victory in Iraq. Bush dismissed calls to announce a timetable and pledged that the United States would not surrender Iraq to Al Qaida.

"Setting an artificial deadline to withdraw would send the signal to our enemies that if they wait long enough, America will cut and run and abandon its friends," Bush said. "And setting an artificial deadline to withdraw would vindicate the terrorist tactics of beheadings and suicide bombings and mass murder, and invite new attacks on America."