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| Iraq |
| UK could send more troops to Iraq |
| 2003-11-13 |
| EFL More British troops will be sent to Iraq if they are needed, Foreign Secretary Jack Straw has said. Mr Straw is holding talks in Washington with US counterpart Colin Powell as Iraq security fears increase. Speaking before the meetings, he told the BBC troop numbers were being kept under constant review. Earlier, Number 10 said the coalition would not be "bombed, terrorised or intimidated" into leaving Iraq. The prime minister’s official spokesman said there was no question of an early pull out from Iraq. "Our exit strategy is exactly the same today as it was on day one ... We will stay until the job is done," he said. Mr Blair’s spokesman added: "The terrorists who stand for nothing but hatred and bloodshed want to turn the clock back." Mr Straw said British troop numbers had dropped to around 10,000 since the height of the conflict. "They are kept under close review. And I am sure - and I know that both Geoff Hoon (Defence Secretary) and the Chief of the Defence Staff (General Sir Michael Walker) - are constantly making judgements about whether force numbers are adequate," he said. "Both of them have made clear that if they think that these forces need to be reinforced then they will be. The same I believe is true of the United States. "What we are also doing is significantly increasing the capacity of the Iraqi security services." Mr Straw refused to comment on a leaked CIA report warning that growing numbers of Iraqis were supporting armed opposition to coalition rule. "The situation in parts of Iraq is one where we are faced with tremendous difficulties. No-one can or should disguise that," he said. He said the situation must not be allowed to escalate beyond the coalition’s control, although it had improved in many parts of the country since the fall of Saddam Hussein. Mr Straw continued: "What is obvious ... is that there has been some change in the nature of the threat faced by coalition forces over months." He pointed to a "new scale of organisation" among the terrorists who planned and executed the latest suicide bombing. "The people who are most suffering from terrorism are innocent Iraqis who have been over all cooperating with the coalition, who are starting to get on with their lives." Japan has said it will postpone sending troops to join the US-led coalition in Iraq until next year because of the worsening security situation. But Mr Straw stressed 30 countries did have troops in Iraq and he had seen no reports that any of them were thinking of withdrawing their forces. |
| Posted by:Bulldog |