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WASHINGTON, June 17, 2009 – Everything is on track for the withdrawal of American troops from the cities of Iraq, Iraqi and coalition officials said this week. Iraqi security forces are set to assume responsibility for the areas, Iraqi spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said at a June 15 news conference. “The step of withdrawal of American forces from the city will be a main step in this effort,” he said. “And the Iraqi government is committed to receive all the security responsibility and protect security, protect its citizens and all foreigners who are working and living in Iraq.” The security forces...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 27, 2008 – Plans to withdraw four Army brigade combat teams and two Marine battalions by July are “on track” as the military seeks to draw down the number of troops in Iraq as quickly as ground conditions allow, the top U.S. commander in Iraq said today. Appearing today on CNN’s “Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer,” Army Gen. David H. Petraeus said the scheduled withdrawal will reduce the number of troops at the height of the surge by one quarter, or roughly 42,500. Further reductions after July will be based on the state of Iraq’s security, he added....

WASHINGTON, July 20, 2007 – A top coalition commander in Iraq issued a statement today saying remarks he made at a news conference yesterday should not be interpreted as seeking to delay a progress report due in September. "There is no intention to push our reporting requirement beyond September,” said today’s statement issued by Army Lt. Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, commander of Multinational Corps Iraq. “Nothing I said yesterday should be interpreted to suggest otherwise. My reference to November was simply suggesting that as we go forward beyond September, we will gain more understanding of trends." Speaking from Baghdad via...

Iraqi and American Soldiers wait in a field for a Blackhawk helicopter to pick them up after they conducted an air assault operation into a village in eastern Yusufiyah, Iraq to search for a suspected terrorist mortar team and for weapons caches. Official U.S. Army photo. BAGHDAD -- Iraqi Security Forces are on track to take care of their own security and combat operations virtually free of Coalition support within the next year, Multi-National Force - Iraq’s spokesman told reporters Tuesday. “The Iraqi Security Force is making progress toward ensuring that Iraq’s future will be determined by Iraqis who want...

HIT, Iraq (June 16, 2006) -- Four months into a year-long deployment in this poverty stricken city of 30,000, U.S. soldiers say they’ve gotten a hold of this insurgent-heavy region, and are confident the Iraqi Army will spearhead operations by year’s end. Iraqi soldiers are leading daily patrols through the town, interacting with the local populace, and even catching a few bad guys – solid proof to their American counterparts that an American-to-Iraqi military turnover in operations is only a matter of time. Just two weeks ago, an Iraqi-led patrol caught two men with 122 mm artillery rounds in a...

CAMP AL ASAD, Iraq (March 15, 2006) -- Iraqi soldiers are right on schedule with training requirements that will allow them to eventually relieve U.S. military forces in western Al Anbar Province, according to Marine officials here. Soldiers from the 2nd Brigade, 7th Iraqi Army Division - one of two Iraqi Army brigades in western Al Anbar Province - have spent months now learning the administrative and decision-making processes they’ll need to function as a military headquarters element to the three Iraqi infantry battalions which will eventually be under their charge. Partnered with a Military Transition Team - groups of...

March 29, 2003 White House Says War Is 'On Track'By RICHARD W. STEVENSON ASHINGTON, March 28 — The Bush administration worked to firm up support for the war today, accusing Saddam Hussein of operating death squads, warning Syria and Iran against interfering with allied operations and mounting a concerted effort to counter the impression that the fighting had gone worse than expected in its first nine days. On the defensive about whether the war is unfolding as quickly and as smoothly as they had expected, administration officials expressed confidence in the strength and flexibility of their military plan, and said...