bu$h* Given Plan to Put Off Further Cuts in Troops in Iraq

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WASHINGTON — Troop levels in Iraq would remain nearly the same through 2008 as at any time during five years of war, under plans presented to President Bush on Monday by the senior American commander and the top American diplomat in Iraq, senior officials said.

Mr. Bush announced no final decision on future troop levels after the video briefing by the commander, Gen. David H. Petraeus, and the diplomat, Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker. The briefing took place on the day when the 4,000th American military death of the war was reported and just after the invasion’s fifth anniversary.

But it now appears likely that any decision on major reductions in American troops from Iraq will be left to the next president. That ensures that the question over what comes next will remain in the center of the presidential campaign through Election Day.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/25/washington/25policy.html?hp=&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1206407293-zC3SAlfFi/oL7eiklePmjQ&pagewanted=print