'Blair tells Bush about British troop pullout'
'Pakistan Times' Wire Service

WASHINGTON: Britain, the United States' main wartime ally, informed Washington Tuesday that it will begin pulling its 7,100 troops out of Iraq, the White House said Tuesday.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair told US President George W. Bush of the move in a telephone call early Tuesday, said White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe.

Word that Bush's closest ally was pulling out came at a delicate time for the US leader, facing heavy opposition to his deployment of another 21,500 US soldiers nearly four years into the unpopular war.

But Johndroe called the British move a positive sign of increasing stabilization in Iraq. "President Bush sees this as a sign of success and what is possible for us once we help the Iraqis deal with the sectarian violence in Baghdad," he said.

"The president is grateful for the support of the British Forces in the past and into the future. While the United Kingdom is maintaining a robust force in southern Iraq, we're pleased that conditions in Basra have improved sufficiently that they are able to transition more control to the Iraqis."

"The United States shares the same goal of turning responsibility over to the Iraqi Security Forces and reducing the number of American troops in Iraq."

In London, media reports said Blair would announce on Wednesday that the withdrawal of thousands of his country's troops would begin in weeks.●