Lawrence J. Korb on President Obama's Iraq Plan

What message does President ObamaÕs troop withdrawal announcement send to Iraq?

Well, what the message it sends to the Iraqi people is that weÕre not occupiers that we will live up to the terms of the status of forces agreement, and we will leave their country. It also says to them: itÕs time for them to take control of their own security because by August of 2010, the U.S. is no longer going to be conducting combat operations.

Is the withdrawal plan likely to spur political action in Iraq?

If the withdrawal plan does not spur political action, it will be something the Iraqis have to live withÑbecause we cannot stay there forever and the Iraqis canÕt keep relying on us as a crutch. And they know that when weÕre not there, if they donÕt have this political reconciliation, theyÕre going to have to live with the uneasiness that thatÕs going to create among various groups, and may lead to increased violence. ItÕs really up to them, weÕre going to have to leave sometime, and theyÕre going to have to take control of their own destiny.

Will the United States be ready to leave by August 2010?

The U.S. will be ready to leave by August of 2010 for a number of reasons. First of all, come July of this year, our forces have to leave to the cities and town, and can only go out on combat missions only with the permission of the Iraqis. So in a sense, a year before our forces leave, they are going to have a reduced roll. The other is that we will have to continue to relieve the strain on our army and marine forces, particularly our combat forces, and allow them more time at home between deploymentsÑso we have to really withdraw them. Finally, the president is going to be beefing up the forces in Afghanistan, and unless you withdraw them from Iraq, you really donÕt have the forces that you need for AfghanistanÑwhich the president quite rightly refers to as an essential front in the war on terror.