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Last updated 6:58AM ET
February 13, 2012
KPLU Local News
KPLU Local News
Iraq Drawdown And Return of NW Troops On Track
Tom Banse (2010-03-19)
JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, WA (N3) - An Army lieutenant general said Tuesday the drawdown of troops from Iraq is on track. That means thousands of deployed soldiers can be expected to return home to the Northwest on schedule this summer and fall. KPLU's Tom Banse has more.

Lt. Gen. Charles Jacoby returned home to Joint Base Lewis-McChord earlier this week after a year as the American military's second-in-command in Iraq. He oversaw day-to-day ground operations. When Jacoby landed in Iraq a year ago, the U-S had 133,000 troops in country. Today, there are 96,000. Jacoby says the successful Iraqi election earlier this month clears the way to accelerate the pull out.

Charles Jacoby: "We feel as we left that the security environment, the way the election was conducted, and how the results are starting to size up, that the drawdown of U.S. capabilities will continue on track."

Plans call for reducing American combat forces to 50,000 by the end of summer. That's about the time thousands of soldiers assigned to units based in western Washington are scheduled to come home. That includes two big Stryker brigades. I'm Tom Banse near Tacoma. © Copyright 2012, N3