The Iraqi parliament has delayed a vote on whether it wants US troops to leave the country in 2011. If succesful, this would be a step towards fulls sovreignty for Iraq once more for the first time since 2003. However, if the troops pull out there is of course a danger that militias could begin fighting once more and destabilize the area. The idea is that by the end of next year, US troops would no longer be allowed to patrol Iraqi streets and would not be allowed to conduct raids without Iraqi approval.
The American reaction to the decision will be interesting. The United States has long claimed now that they are there on request of the Iraqi government to maintain order while it establishes itself. How keen will US policymakers be on exiting? This doesn’t seem entirely unlike the ‘Vietnamization’ of the Vietnam War, where the US stood up South Vietnam forces and pulled out – only to have them collapse in a matter of weeks. The situation is not the same this time (after all, there is no clear enemy state for other powers to interfere with).
One can’t help feel that the Iraqis have been waiting for the US election to put forward this initiative. President-Elect Obama, after all, prioritizes Afghanistan over Iraq and would probably be sympathetic to this idea.
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