Gates on board with Obama's Iraq plan

The Defense secretary says the new U.S.-Iraq security agreement changes the conversation from debating a timeline for withdrawal to figuring out how to reduce troops responsibly.

By Julian E. Barnes
LA Times
December 3, 2008

Reporting from Washington — Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said he accepted President-elect Barack Obama's approach to scheduled troop reductions in Iraq, arguing Tuesday that the hotly debated subject of timelines for withdrawal largely had been settled by a new U.S.-Iraq security agreement.

"That bridge has been crossed," Gates said a day after he formally agreed to remain as Obama's Defense secretary. "And so the question is: How do we do this in a responsible way?"

The security agreement, approved last week by Iraqi officials, requires U.S. combat troops to leave Iraqi cities and towns by June 30 and to withdraw completely by the end of 2011. Obama wants combat troops out within 16 months, but has indicated he would take security considerations and advice from commanders into account.

By staying, Gates becomes the first U.S. Pentagon chief to be carried over from one administration to the next. In a Gallup poll released Tuesday, 80% of Americans surveyed supported Obama's decision to keep Gates.

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