Gulf | Bahrain
Bush: Iraq pullout on track
US President George W. Bush receives a warm welcome in Bahrain ahead of visit to the UAE on Sunday.
- Agencies
- Published: 23:29 January 12, 2008
- Bush with his host Bahraini King Hamad Bin Eisa Al Khalifa during an arrival ceremony at Sakhir Palace in Manama.
- Image Credit: Reuters
Camp Arifjan/Manama: President George W. Bush said on Saturday that America's new strategy had reversed Iraq's descent into mayhem and the United States was on track to complete the withdrawal of 20,000 troops by mid-year.
Speaking at a US base in the Kuwaiti desert, Bush said Iran and Syria had to stop promoting violence in Iraq. "Iran's role in fomenting violence has been exposed," he said. "Syria needs to further reduce the flow of terrorists to the territory, especially suicide bombers. Iran must stop supporting the militia special groups that attack Iraqi and coalition forces and kidnap and kill Iraqi officials," he said.
After talks with his military commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus, and the US ambassador in Baghdad, Ryan Crocker, Bush said security gains in Iraq "are allowing some US forces to return home".
Cementing ties
Bush conceded that until last year, "our strategy simply wasn't working," but said the new strategy, involving a troop buildup and a focus on counter-insurgency warfare, was turning things around. "Iraq is now a different place from one year ago. Much hard work remains, but levels of violence are significantly reduced. Hope is returning to Baghdad," he said.
Bush arrives in the UAE today on a visit aimed at cementing ties with the nation. The first sitting US president to visit the UAE, Bush will travel from Bahrain, where he was warmly welcomed by King Hamad on Saturday.
He was later honoured at an official greeting ceremony at one of the palaces in Manama, where King Hamad Bin Eisa Al Khalifa hailed the United States as "a friend, an ally and a partner".
The king expressed "pride" in Manama's longstanding links with the US Navy, which he said had "secured freedom of navigation" in the Gulf.
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