Pulling Out in '05?

I'm not sure if I buy this or not; but the Jan. 30 vote was clearly a huge milestone.

WASHINGTON – Britain and the United States have agreed on a withdrawal plan that would see the first troops leaving Iraq as early as 2005, according to British press reports and diplomatic sources.

The sources said London and Washington have approved a plan that would replace military troops with civilian advisers to the Iraqi military, police and security forces. The sources said these advisers would train and mentor Iraqi forces in such operations as counter-insurgency and border security, Middle East Newsline reported.

"The agreement is that the first troops would leave in late 2005," a source said. "The number of troops and withdrawal timetable would depend on operational considerations."

The agreement was reached during talks between U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and British Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon on Jan. 24. The London-based Guardian daily reported Hoon agreed to recommendations by a retired U.S. general, Gary Luck, on the use of Western advisers to help accelerate Iraqi military and police training.

Earlier, the Pentagon said it planned to maintain about 150,000 U.S. troops in Iraq until 2007. But the diplomatic sources said Hoon and Rumsfeld agreed that coalition troop levels would be reduced in late 2005.

The sources said the first milestone to the effectiveness of Iraqi troops was the national elections on Jan. 30.