Houston Chronicle : Military may urge bigger troop buildup in Iraq

Military may urge bigger troop buildup in Iraq

U.S. focuses on better security but also considers stress on troops

By ROBERT BURNS | Associated Press | July 16, 2007

BAGHDAD — The U.S. military is weighing new directions for Iraq, including an even bigger troop buildup if President Bush thinks his "surge" strategy needs a further boost, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Monday.

Marine Gen. Peter Pace revealed that he and the chiefs of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force are developing their own assessment of the situation in Iraq, to be presented to Bush in September. That will be separate from the highly anticipated report to Congress that month by Gen. David Petraeus, the top commander for Iraq.

The Joint Chiefs are considering a range of actions, including another troop buildup, Pace said without making any predictions. He called it prudent planning to enable the services to be ready for Bush's decision.

The military must "be prepared for whatever it's going to look like two months from now," Pace said in an interview with two reporters traveling with him to Iraq from Washington.

Pace, on his first visit since U.S. commanders accelerated combat operations in mid-June, said another option under consideration is maintaining current troop levels beyond September.

There are about 158,000 U.S. troops in Iraq, reflecting a boost of about 30,000 to carry out the new strategy Bush announced in January. The plan is focused on providing better security for Iraqis in Baghdad, but the intended effect — political reconciliation between Sunnis and Shiites — has yet to be achieved, and many in Congress are clamoring to begin withdrawing troops soon.

In Washington on Monday, Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid said he would force the chamber's first all-night debate on the Iraq war tonight in advance of a vote Wednesday on whether to bring home all combat troops by next spring.

Pace said in Iraq that the administration must consider not only what works best on the battlefield but also the growing stress of more than four years of war on American troops and their families.

"That has impact on families," he said after meeting with commanders and conferring by secure video teleconference with Bush.