Too soon to weigh impact of troop 'surge' in Iraq: Gates (AFP)

[Eugene]

Too soon to weigh impact of troop 'surge' in Iraq: Gates

53 minutes ago

WASHINGTON (AFP) - US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said Sunday
it is too soon to know whether the recent "surge" of thousands of additional
US troops in Iraq is quelling rampant sectarian violence.

"I think that the way I would characterize it is, so far so good," said Gates,
adding however that "it's very early" to make a more definitive assessment.

"General (David) Petraeus, the commander out there, has said that it will
probably be summer before we know whether we're being successful or not,"
the defense secretary told CBS television's "Face the Nation" program.

Gates added that he is also generally happy with how Iraqi forces are
performing since the United States began deploying over 25,000 more US
troops in Iraq.

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Full article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070318/pl_afp/usiraqgatesforce_070318153046