Bush Embraces Hold on Troop Reductions

Bush Embraces Hold on Troop Reductions, Return to 12-Month Combat Tours


WASHINGTON — President Bush has endorsed a plan to put an indefinite hold on further troop withdrawals after July.

On Thursday, the president also announced that U.S. troop combat tours would cut be from 15 months to 12 months, and said Army units will have a year of rest for every year of combat.

Gen. David Petraeus this week told Congress he has recommended a 45-day moratorium on troop movements following a series of withdrawals due to end in July. Only after that, he said, would he make further recommendations on when to drop troop levels further.

Bush said he fully backs that plan, citing news of ongoing success in Iraq but concerns of continued threats from insurgents, Al Qaeda in Iraq and Iran.

"I've told him he'll have all the time he needs," Bush told reporters, speaking at the White House Cross Hall.