Iraq ready if Obama orders quick exit: minister

[sabra]

Source: Reuters

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraq's military is "prepared for the worst" if President Barack Obama orders a swift withdrawal of U.S. troops, Defence Minister Abdul Qader Jassim said on Thursday.

Obama -- who opposed the war in Iraq and campaigned on a pledge to withdraw U.S. combat troops by mid-2010 -- met military chiefs on Wednesday, his first day in office, and told them to plan for a "responsible military drawdown" from Iraq.

In a security pact which took effect on New Year's Day, the former U.S. administration of President George W. Bush committed to pulling combat troops out of Iraq's towns by mid-2009 and withdrawing entirely from the country by the end of 2011.

Asked if Iraq was ready in case of a quicker U.S. exit, Jassim told a news conference: "We cannot leave our country whether (U.S.) troops withdraw from it or not. We are here, and we have our plans prepared for the worst."

He said Iraq's army was 90 percent ready to conduct combat missions on its own but the military would need until at least mid-2010 to set up a self-sufficient air force.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090122/ts_nm/us_iraq_obama_withdrawal_1

[Soylent Brice]

1. intresting choice of words

"We cannot leave our country whether (U.S.) troops withdraw from it or not. We are here, and we have our plans prepared for the worst."

basically they're assuming the worst. thanks *.

[Tempest]

2. After Bush armed opposition groups to fight against al-Qaeda

There is a real danger of a civil war after the U.S. pulls out.

But that's also no reason to stay.