US president George W Bush will tomorrow announce plans to reduce the American troop presence in Iraq by as many as 30,000 by the middle of next year, subject to continued progress.
In a 15-minute address from the White House, Mr Bush will endorse the recommendations of his top general and top diplomat in Iraq, following their appearances at two days of hearings in Congress, administration officials said.
The White House plans to issue a written status report on the so-called surge on Friday, they said.
US Army General David Petraeus prepares to testify on the state of the war in Iraq to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington yesterday
Mr Bush was rehearsing his remarks yesterday even as the US commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus, and US Ambassador Ryan Crocker were presenting their arguments for a second day in Congress.
In the speech, the President will say he understands Americans' deep misgivings about US involvement in Iraq and their desire to bring the troops home, they said.
Mr Bush will say that, after hearing from General Petraeus and Mr Crocker, he has decided on a way forward that will reduce the US military presence but not abandon Iraq to chaos, according to the officials.
The address will stake out a conciliatory tone toward Congress. While mirroring General Petraeus's strategy, however, Mr Bush will place more conditions on reductions than his general did, insisting that conditions on the ground must warrant cuts and that unforeseen events could change the plan.
Even if it goes as planned, the 130,000 or so troops left by midyear 2008 will match the number in Iraq before Mr Bush ordered the buildup last January.
General Petraeus recommended that a 2,000-member Marine unit return home this month without replacement. That would be followed in mid-December with the departure of an Army brigade numbering 3,500 to 4,000 soldiers.
Under the general's plan, another four combat brigades would be withdrawn by July 2008. That could leave the United States with as few as 130,000-135,000 troops in Iraq, down from about 168,000 now.
General Petraeus said he foresaw even deeper troop cuts beyond July, but he recommended that Mr Bush wait until at least March to decide when to go below 130,000 and at what pace.