U.S. Army Sgt. Daniel Kear makes his way down a road after canal vegetation is set ablaze in Tahwilla, Iraq, on July 30, 2008. Extremists use the concealment provided by the canal system to place IED's under the cover of night. Kear is with Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 6th Infantry Regiment, assigned to Task Force 1-35 Armor, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division. DoD photo by Spc. David J. Marshall, U.S. Army. (Released)Sources: Bush Advised To Delay Troop Cuts In Iraq -- Myway
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush's top defense advisers have recommended 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 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.
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.
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Update: Plan Would Shift Forces From Iraq to Afghanistan -- New York Times
My Comment: There is clear worry and nervousness among many defense advisers. From my vantage point I can see their point of view. al Qaeda cells still exist in Iraq. There is no trust between Kurds, Sunni, and Shiite factions.The Iranian nuclear issue is not resolved. And .... oil and energy supplies are vulnerable .... the Russian Army in Georgia made that point very clear.
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