Call in the Coalition of the Leaving.
Radar magazine recently ran a feature about the coalition of countries who offered support for the U.S. invasion of Iraq, noting that there are still about 12,000 foreign troops on the ground in Iraq, even after most countries that were part of the original “Coalition of the Willing” have since withdrawn.
Radar described Australia’s contribution to the war effort this way:
Australian troops were among the very first to invade Iraq, having been assigned with taking out Saddam’s scud missiles a day before the initial U.S. bombing campaign began in March 2003. And while Australian Prime Minster John Howard has suffered politically for his outspoken support of the mission, he recently reaffirmed Australia’s commitment to keeping troops there until the Iraqi government can defend itself.
Perhaps that reaffirmation was not as solid as the Bush administration would have liked.
Australian Prime Minister John Howard is secretly planning to begin withdrawing Australian troops from Iraq by February 2008, Australian media reported on Sunday.
The Sunday Telegraph, quoting an unnamed senior military source, described Howard’s withdrawal plan as “one of the most closely guarded secrets in top levels of the bureaucracy.”
The Sunday Telegraph said the drawdown of troops would focus on soldiers based in southern Iraq on security duty with Iraqi soldiers.
