Iraq: No Withdrawal Timetable, No Deal

Dates For U.S. Forces To Leave Necessary Before Security Accord Can Be Inked, Official Says

(CBS/ AP)  Iraq's national security adviser said Tuesday his country will not accept any security deal with the United States unless it contains specific dates for the withdrawal of U.S.-led forces.

The comments by Mouwaffak al-Rubaie were the strongest yet by an Iraqi official about the deal now under negotiation with U.S. officials. It came a day after Iraq's prime minister first said publicly that he expects the pending troop deal with the United States to have some type of timetable for withdrawal.

U.S. President George W. Bush has said he opposes a timetable. The White House said Monday it did not believe al-Maliki was proposing a rigid timeline for U.S. troop withdrawals.

U.S. officials had no immediate comment Tuesday on al-Rubaie's words.

Al-Rubaie spoke to reporters after briefing Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani in Najaf on the progress of the government's security efforts, and the talks.

"Our stance in the negotiations underway with the American side will be strong ... We will not accept any memorandum of understanding that doesn't have specific dates to withdraw foreign forces from Iraq," al-Rubaie sid.

Some type of agreement between the United States and Iraq is needed to keep U.S. troops in Iraq after a U.N. mandate expires at year's end.

U.S. officials have said little publicly about the negotiations. Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, did not comment directly on the specifics when asked about it on a trip to Baghdad.

"We'd all like to see U.S. troops get out of here at some point in time," Mullen said. "However, from a military perspective I need the laws and the regulations and the agreements from the government of Iraq in order to continue operations beyond the 31st of December of this year."

On Monday, Mullen sounded more optimistic, saying, "From all I see, the security conditions are holding, the level of violence is down; we're down to a level that we haven't seen in over four years."

Iraq's government has felt increasingly confident in recent weeks about its authority and the country's improved stability, and Iraqi officials have sharpened their public stance in the negotiations considerably in just the last few days.

Violence in Iraq has fallen to its lowest level in four years. The change has been driven by the 2007 buildup of American forces, the Sunni tribal revolt against al Qaeda in Iraq and crackdowns against Shiite militias and Sunni extremists.

In other developments:

Worried about increasing insurgent attacks in Afghanistan, the U.S. military says it is sending extra air power there by shifting an aircraft carrier away from the Iraq war. Defense officials said Tuesday that the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln was moved out of the Persian Gulf and to the Gulf of Oman, shortening the time that the carrier's strike planes must fly to support combat in Afghanistan.

The U.S. military says a roadside bomb has killed four contractors and injured eight others in northern Iraq. The military says in a statement that the bomb struck a convoy carrying the contractors near the northern city of Mosul, 225 miles northwest of Baghdad. The statement did not say whether the contractors were Iraqis or foreigners.

A bomb near a dress shop in Baqouba killed one woman Monday and wounded 14 other people, police said. Baqouba, 35 miles northeast of Baghdad, and the surrounding Diyala province remain one of the country's most violent regions.

Also Monday, gunmen killed a member of the Sunni Iraqi Islamic Party in Tal Afar, 260 miles northwest of Baghdad, said police, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.

© MMVIII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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by rowdywicca July 9, 2008 4:38 PM EDT

So you''''re saying al-Maliki (not Malaki, btw) is running on a platform of ''''Vote for me, I''''ll get rid of the Americans & you''''ll all die?''''


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by nanc12 at 12:19 PM : Jul 09, 2008

Yeah, Malaki is stupid like Obama who''ll say anything to get a vote whether it''s good for the people or not.

Reply to this comment

by nanc12 July 9, 2008 3:19 PM EDT

It''''s also an election year in Iraq...and I suspect that Malaki is doing the same thing Obama is...throwing around a lot of rhetoric...Malaki knows what will happen when the US pulls out...Iraq will be annexed by Iran and the Sunni''''s will be DEAD.
Posted by RowdyWicca

So you''re saying al-Maliki (not Malaki, btw) is running on a platform of ''Vote for me, I''ll get rid of the Americans & you''ll all die?''

Reply to this comment

by leftyintexas July 9, 2008 2:02 PM EDT

Democrats Hate FOX News because millions of American have chosen %u201CFair and Balanced.%u201D

Posted by demslie2u at 07:57 AM : Jul 09, 2008

Always knew you were an idiot. Thanks for confirming it.

Reply to this comment

by leftyintexas July 9, 2008 1:58 PM EDT

"Our stance in the negotiations underway with the American side will be strong ... We will not accept any memorandum of understanding that doesn''t have specific dates to withdraw foreign forces from Iraq," al-Rubaie sid.

HOW PLAINER CAN IT BE TO YOU BUSHITES? THE IRAQIS WANT SPECIFIC DATES ON U.S. TROOP WITHDRAWALS. GOT IT? SO WHAT LAME EXCUSE ARE YOU BUSHITES GOING TO COME UP WITH NOW FOR JUSTIFYING OUR CONTINUED OCCUPATION OF THEIR COUNTRY? (THIS SHOULD BE GOOD.) ONLY 195 DAYS LEFT! ENJOY!

Reply to this comment

by rowdywicca July 9, 2008 11:20 AM EDT

It''s also an election year in Iraq...and I suspect that Malaki is doing the same thing Obama is...throwing around a lot of rhetoric...Malaki knows what will happen when the US pulls out...Iraq will be annexed by Iran and the Sunni''s will be DEAD.

Reply to this comment

by jjp735i July 9, 2008 11:18 AM EDT

Of course McVet can rant, but he should at least be correct in his rant.

Reply to this comment

by tomar0317 July 9, 2008 11:17 AM EDT

Why not just pull our troops right now? The Iraquis in reality only want us there is the short term and they have to run their own country. We will have a timetable before the election anyways as it will be a political issue for votes. Let''s get clear of the region and concentrate on our own country''s economy.

Reply to this comment

by sidvicious62 July 9, 2008 11:12 AM EDT

McVet can rant over anything he wants there fella. You go ahead and rant, McVet..

Reply to this comment

by jjp735i July 9, 2008 11:11 AM EDT

"the IRAQ government said no hard timetable for troop to leave .....Posted by demslie2u at 07:57 AM

Um, read the story next time. "The White House said Monday it did not believe al-Maliki was proposing a rigid timeline for U.S. troop withdrawals" not the Iraq government. You really believe Bush?

Reply to this comment

by jjp735i July 9, 2008 10:53 AM EDT

"So in your VERY small and VERY insignificant little mind" Posted by MCVet at 06:45 AM

Did you really bother to read my post? The Dems made the same demand and caved into Bush. In other words they are weak and give into Bush all the time. I am not a Bush fan and if you bothered to pay attention to what you are reading...........you would see I think we could have pulled out already if Nancy did her job and stuck to what the Democrats stated they would do, cut off the war funds to end Bush''s lie.

By the way, who do you think you are, besides some arrogant fool, calling anyone a pathetic loser? You jump the gun and rant and all the while you ranted over nothing.

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[rowdywicca]

So you''''re saying al-Maliki (not Malaki, btw) is running on a platform of ''''Vote for me, I''''ll get rid of the Americans & you''''ll all die?''''


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by nanc12 at 12:19 PM : Jul 09, 2008

Yeah, Malaki is stupid like Obama who''ll say anything to get a vote whether it''s good for the people or not.

[nanc12]

It''''s also an election year in Iraq...and I suspect that Malaki is doing the same thing Obama is...throwing around a lot of rhetoric...Malaki knows what will happen when the US pulls out...Iraq will be annexed by Iran and the Sunni''''s will be DEAD.
Posted by RowdyWicca

So you''re saying al-Maliki (not Malaki, btw) is running on a platform of ''Vote for me, I''ll get rid of the Americans & you''ll all die?''

[leftyintexas]

Democrats Hate FOX News because millions of American have chosen %u201CFair and Balanced.%u201D

Posted by demslie2u at 07:57 AM : Jul 09, 2008

Always knew you were an idiot. Thanks for confirming it.

[leftyintexas]

"Our stance in the negotiations underway with the American side will be strong ... We will not accept any memorandum of understanding that doesn''t have specific dates to withdraw foreign forces from Iraq," al-Rubaie sid.

HOW PLAINER CAN IT BE TO YOU BUSHITES? THE IRAQIS WANT SPECIFIC DATES ON U.S. TROOP WITHDRAWALS. GOT IT? SO WHAT LAME EXCUSE ARE YOU BUSHITES GOING TO COME UP WITH NOW FOR JUSTIFYING OUR CONTINUED OCCUPATION OF THEIR COUNTRY? (THIS SHOULD BE GOOD.) ONLY 195 DAYS LEFT! ENJOY!

[rowdywicca]

It''s also an election year in Iraq...and I suspect that Malaki is doing the same thing Obama is...throwing around a lot of rhetoric...Malaki knows what will happen when the US pulls out...Iraq will be annexed by Iran and the Sunni''s will be DEAD.

[jjp735i]

Of course McVet can rant, but he should at least be correct in his rant.

[tomar0317]

Why not just pull our troops right now? The Iraquis in reality only want us there is the short term and they have to run their own country. We will have a timetable before the election anyways as it will be a political issue for votes. Let''s get clear of the region and concentrate on our own country''s economy.

[sidvicious62]

McVet can rant over anything he wants there fella. You go ahead and rant, McVet..

[jjp735i]

"the IRAQ government said no hard timetable for troop to leave .....Posted by demslie2u at 07:57 AM

Um, read the story next time. "The White House said Monday it did not believe al-Maliki was proposing a rigid timeline for U.S. troop withdrawals" not the Iraq government. You really believe Bush?

[jjp735i]

"So in your VERY small and VERY insignificant little mind" Posted by MCVet at 06:45 AM

Did you really bother to read my post? The Dems made the same demand and caved into Bush. In other words they are weak and give into Bush all the time. I am not a Bush fan and if you bothered to pay attention to what you are reading...........you would see I think we could have pulled out already if Nancy did her job and stuck to what the Democrats stated they would do, cut off the war funds to end Bush''s lie.

By the way, who do you think you are, besides some arrogant fool, calling anyone a pathetic loser? You jump the gun and rant and all the while you ranted over nothing.