The Enid News and Eagle, Enid, OK

Opinion

Discussion

July 1, 2009

Troop withdrawal from Iraqi cities is a significant victory

Although Tuesday’s pullout of urban areas of Iraq by U.S. military troops was met officially with pretty low-key fanfare, Americans should consider it a victory for our nation’s troops and our ideals.

While the current administration may want our nation to feel embarrassment or shame for our role in relieving Iraq of the tyrant Saddam Hussein, the withdrawal of troops on Tuesday signaled a new phase in this war on terror, and it also signaled a victory for what our troops have accomplished there. Our troops are not pulling out in fear — they are pulling out because they have successfully completed a major portion of a very long and difficult mission.

The pullback was not at the direction of President Barack Obama, but a scheduled agreement President George W. Bush made with Iraqis last year. The pull back of combat troops from cities is part of a security pact that calls for a full withdrawal of American forces by the end of 2011.

Some 130,000 U.S. troops will remain in Iraq and a small number of them will stay in cities as trainers and advisers at the request of the Iraqi government. But, now it’s up to Iraqi security forces to provide protection in these urban areas.

Even in the pull back, four American soldiers were killed by militants, showing there still is a threat in Iraq. However, the commanders on the ground believe the Iraqis are sufficiently trained to take over from here.

The troops and their commanders who have served in this mission deserve our nation’s thanks and our support. They deserve to be honored and held in high esteem for what they have accomplished, despite mixed political signals they got from their own lawmakers at home.

This is no Vietnam. This is a victory because our military accomplished the security mission they were tasked with. Our president, our lawmakers and our citizens should be proud of what they have accomplished, and they should show that pride in every way possible.

We in Enid, who help train our nation’s forces, are proud of our military and those who have served our country in Iraq. And, we thank them for a job well done.

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