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U.S. lawmakers call for more American troops in Iraq
U.S. lawmakers call for more American troops in Iraq
Sun Aug 14, 2005 3:28 PM ET
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two top U.S. lawmakers on Sunday called for more American troops to be sent to Iraq, but the head of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee said that was "very unlikely."
Sens. Joseph Biden and John McCain said there were not enough U.S. forces to fend off insurgent attacks and not enough Iraqi forces are trained to take over from the 138,000 U.S. soldiers there.
Biden, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee ranking Democrat, said fewer than 3,000 Iraqis are fully trained to take over from their American counterparts.
"We have another probably 20 to 30 battalions out there that, with embedded U.S. military, are able to do a serious, positive job. After that, it falls off the cliff," the Delaware senator said on NBC'S "Meet the Press."
A recent U.S. military report put the number of Iraqi security forces at 171,300.
McCain, a top Republican on the Senate Armed Services committee, said if more American troops are not sent, Iraqis should continue to supplement but not replace U.S. forces.
"The day that I can land at the airport in Baghdad and ride in an unarmed car down the highway to the green zone is the day that I'll start considering withdrawals from Iraq," the Arizona Republican told "Fox News Sunday."
Earlier this week, President Bush said there was progress in training Iraq's troops and that "more and more" of them are able to fight insurgents.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Richard Lugar said while there were not enough U.S. troops to keep out insurgents, sending more probably would not happen.
"It's very unlikely that we're going to send more troops to Iraq. We are going to have to train the Iraqis faster and harder," Lugar, an Indiana Republican, said on CNN's "Late Edition."
The senators' comments followed a report by The Washington Post on Sunday that said the Bush administration is lowering its expectations of what it can achieve in Iraq.
The report quoted an unnamed senior official, who said U.S. officials do not expect Iraq to develop a model democracy, a self-sustained oil industry or a stable society.
"What we expected to achieve was never realistic given the timetable or what unfolded on the ground," the Post report quoted the official as saying.
Florida Democrat Sen. Bill Nelson, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said the administration lowered its expectations because "we were not prepared for the occupation."
Nelson, who agreed more U.S. troops are needed, told CNN Congress should "make sure the administration comes forth with specific goals and benchmarks and timetables as to what can be expected in the way of progress of allowing the Iraqi army to be able to provide their own security."
The number of U.S. military deaths in Iraq since the March 2003 invasion had reached 1,852 as of Sunday.
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Sun Aug 14, 2005 3:28 PM ET
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two top U.S. lawmakers on Sunday called for more American troops to be sent to Iraq, but the head of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee said that was "very unlikely."
Sens. Joseph Biden and John McCain said there were not enough U.S. forces to fend off insurgent attacks and not enough Iraqi forces are trained to take over from the 138,000 U.S. soldiers there.
Biden, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee ranking Democrat, said fewer than 3,000 Iraqis are fully trained to take over from their American counterparts.
"We have another probably 20 to 30 battalions out there that, with embedded U.S. military, are able to do a serious, positive job. After that, it falls off the cliff," the Delaware senator said on NBC'S "Meet the Press."
A recent U.S. military report put the number of Iraqi security forces at 171,300.
McCain, a top Republican on the Senate Armed Services committee, said if more American troops are not sent, Iraqis should continue to supplement but not replace U.S. forces.
"The day that I can land at the airport in Baghdad and ride in an unarmed car down the highway to the green zone is the day that I'll start considering withdrawals from Iraq," the Arizona Republican told "Fox News Sunday."
Earlier this week, President Bush said there was progress in training Iraq's troops and that "more and more" of them are able to fight insurgents.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Richard Lugar said while there were not enough U.S. troops to keep out insurgents, sending more probably would not happen.
"It's very unlikely that we're going to send more troops to Iraq. We are going to have to train the Iraqis faster and harder," Lugar, an Indiana Republican, said on CNN's "Late Edition."
The senators' comments followed a report by The Washington Post on Sunday that said the Bush administration is lowering its expectations of what it can achieve in Iraq.
The report quoted an unnamed senior official, who said U.S. officials do not expect Iraq to develop a model democracy, a self-sustained oil industry or a stable society.
"What we expected to achieve was never realistic given the timetable or what unfolded on the ground," the Post report quoted the official as saying.
Florida Democrat Sen. Bill Nelson, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said the administration lowered its expectations because "we were not prepared for the occupation."
Nelson, who agreed more U.S. troops are needed, told CNN Congress should "make sure the administration comes forth with specific goals and benchmarks and timetables as to what can be expected in the way of progress of allowing the Iraqi army to be able to provide their own security."
The number of U.S. military deaths in Iraq since the March 2003 invasion had reached 1,852 as of Sunday.
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