Tony Blair sketches out Britain's exit from Iraq
From Economist.com
It came as little surprise. On Wednesday February 21st Britain’s prime minister, Tony Blair, made his weekly appearance in Parliament and said that 1,600 of the 7,100 British soldiers still serving in Iraq would start leaving in the next few months. More may follow soon after that. Despite ongoing violence, it had become clear that gradual British withdrawal would start soon. For months defence officials in Britain had said that Iraqi troops were growing capable of running the four provinces of southern Iraq which were put under British control after the invasion in 2003. Domestic British politics is a factor too. Mr Blair leaves office this year, probably in the summer. He and his presumed successor, Gordon Brown, the finance minister, are keen to show an exit schedule from a war that has proved deeply unpopular with voters.
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