(AP)
Updated: 2007-09-07 10:49

"At the end of the day, we have to make judgments on whether or not we believe continuing military presence by American troops - whether they're in Iraq for a day, a year or 10 years - will make any difference to the Iraqi government and the Iraqi people," said Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., and another presidential hopeful.

Clinton sent a letter to President Bush on Wednesday, asking him to address 20 questions in his upcoming assessment on Iraq, including why the troop buildup has not prompted a political settlement.

The panel's finding that the US should reduce its visibility in Iraq is not necessarily at odds with the Bush administration. President Bush has long said the combat mission must be transferred to the Iraqis as soon as they can take over and security conditions improve.

But the study suggests that lowering the profile of US forces is a precondition to improving security conditions. It also says helpful "adjustments" could begin in early 2008.

The Pentagon said Thursday that US troop levels - currently at 168,000 - are expected to hit a record high of 172,000 in the coming weeks.

When asked by McCain whether he would support a deadline for troop withdrawals, Jones said he would not.

"I think deadlines can work against us," Jones said. "I think a deadline of this magnitude would be against our national interest."

Jones' report, released Thursday, concluded that Iraqi security forces would be unable to take control of their country in the next 18 months. If Iraqi troops were given more of a lead, as envisioned by the panel, it is expected that US troops would still play a substantial role by providing logistics and other support, as well as continued training.

Overall, the study found the Iraqi military, in particular its Army, shows the most promise of becoming a viable, independent security force with time. It predicted an adequate logistics system to support these ground forces is at least two years away.

"They are gaining size and strength, and will increasingly be capable of assuming greater responsibility for Iraq's security," the report says of military units, adding that special forces in particular are "highly capable and extremely effective."

Worse off is the Iraqi police force. It describes them as fragile, ill-equipped and infiltrated by militia forces. And they are led by the Ministry of Interior, which is "a ministry in name only" that is "widely regarded as being dysfunctional and sectarian, and suffers from ineffective leadership."

Jones' panel recommended scrapping Baghdad's national police force and starting over.

The US has spent $19.2 billion developing Iraq's forces and plans to spend another $5.5 billion next year. According to Jones' study, the Iraqi military comprises more than 152,000 service members operating under the Ministry of Defense, while the Ministry of Interior oversees some 194,000 civilian security personnel, including police and border control.

The review is one of several studies Congress commissioned in May, when it agreed to fund the war for several more months but demanded that the Bush administration and outside groups assess US progress in the war.

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