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Iraq sees hope of US troop withdrawal by 2010
(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-07-22 00:03

BAGHDAD - Iraq's government welcomed Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama on Monday with word that it apparently shares his hope that US combat forces could leave by 2010.


Iraq's Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki (R) and US Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama shake hands as they pose for the media in Baghdad July 21, 2008. [Agencies] 

The statement by Iraq's government spokesman, Ali al-Dabbagh, followed talks between Obama and Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki - who has struggled for days to clarify Iraq's position on a possible timetable for a US troop pullout.

Al-Dabbagh said the government did not endorse a fixed date, but hoped American combat units could be out of Iraq sometime in 2010. That timeframe falls within the 16-month withdrawal plan proposed by Obama, who arrived in Iraq earlier in the day as part of a congressional fact-finding team.

"We are hoping that in 2010 that combat troops will withdraw from Iraq," al-Dabbagh told reporters, noting that any withdrawal plan was subject to change if the level of violence kicks up again.

Obama made no public statements following the talks with al-Maliki and President Jalal Talabani in Baghdad's heavily protected Green Zone. Obama also plans meetings with US military commanders who will outline recent progress in the war he has opposed from the start.

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This was the third stop on a foreign tour designed to gather information while burnishing the Democratic contender's foreign policy credentials. National security issues are the one issue area in which Obama trails Republican John McCain in the polls.

The Iraqi government comment on troop withdrawals could be embraced by the Obama campaign, but may irritate White House officials. The Bush administration has refused to set specific troop level targets and only last week offered to discuss a "general time horizon" for a US combat troop exit.

The Iraqi stance also is another wrinkle in a confusing series of remarks and denials in recent days.

Al-Maliki was quoted last week by the German magazine Der Spiegel appearing to endorse Obama's 16-month timetable. The Iraqi leader's aides have since said his comments were misunderstood, and he is not taking sides in the US election.

The US military also took the unusual step of translating and distributing the Iraqi government reaction to the Der Spiegel article.

The meetings with Iraqi officials came after Obama began his first on-the-ground inspection of Iraq since launching his bid for the White House.

It marked the second major leg of a war zone tour that opened in Afghanistan. The contrasts in tone and message were distinct.

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