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Mullen: Exit dates in Iraq deal not a problem

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs confirmed Monday that the new U.S. agreement with Iraq calls for all U.S. troops to be completely out of Iraq by the end of 2011 and that he is “comfortable” with the deal.

“It is my understanding that the 2011 date [means] all American forces [must be] out,” said Navy Adm. Mike Mullen.

The specifics of the agreement have not been publicly released, although the Associated Press reports that the SOFA includes a Dec. 31, 2011 pullout date for all the roughly 151,000 U.S. troops in the country and that it is scheduled for a Nov. 24 vote.

The AP has also reported that according to the agreement, U.S. troops must be out of all Iraqi villages and towns by June 30, 2009. Asked at a Pentagon press conference whether that was his understanding, Mullen did not correct the date and, noting that a number of Iraqi provinces have already been turned over to ISF control, said such a shift is “consistent with how we have moved.”

Mullen said he is “delighted” that the Status of Forces Agreement, approved by the Iraq cabinet Sunday and now awaiting ratification by the national legislature, is “moving forward.” The U.N. mandate and legal authority under which U.S. troops now operate expires Dec. 31, making passage crucial to a continued U.S. effort there.

Mullen told defense reporters at the Pentagon that he has discussed the specifics with Army Generals David Petraeus and Ray Odierno, the Central Command and Multi-National Force-Iraq commanders, “And we’re all very comfortable that we have what we need.

“Conditions continue to improve,” Mullen said. The greatest security challenges, he said, will lie in Baghdad and Mosul.

The key to a successful transition, Mullen said, will be preparing Iraqi Security Forces — which he said have "improved dramatically in the last couple of years" — to take over the defense of the entire country by the end of 2011.

“We want to assist them to get ready as rapidly as possible,” Mullen said, adding that the U.S. training mission is on track to get those forces ready.

“The pace is a good pace,” Mullen said. “And I think that the pace will more than suffice for … what needs to be, in terms of Iraqi Security Forces taking over totally in their own security in the future.” He said the process is “very much on track over the next two or three years.” That’s the same amount of time he said it could take to remove the entire U.S. force.

Asked if he was preparing for the possibility that incoming President Barack Obama might press for a more rapid withdrawal, Mullen declined to be specific, saying, “We’re always taking into consideration plans based on what we understand possibilities might be.”

Mullen also expressed alarm about what he called “an extraordinary rise” in the overall number of seizures by pirates and said he was “stunned” to hear that the Saudi supertanker Sirius Star has been seized some 450 miles southeast of Kenya.

“That’s the longest distance I've seen for any of these incidents,” Mullen said.

Most piracy occurs off the east and west coasts of Africa, India and throughout Indonesia. Mullen said he sees a greater role for international navies, including those of the United States and its coalition.

“It’s got a lot of peoples’ attention,” he said. “And it’s starting to have impact on the commercial side, which I know countries raise as a concern. And so there’s a lot more focus on this.”

The Saudi tanker, however, was seized far south of the zone where warships have stepped up patrols this year off the east African coast, the AP reported.

Mullen said that the interception of pirates is not a question of having the authorities or rules of engagement — the coalition has both, he said. But, he added, “If you are intervening and you capture pirates, is there a path to prosecute them? And that’s something I think the international community has got to answer for the long run.”

Mullen said he understands the frustrations of critics who ask how bands of lightly-armed pilots can seemingly hold powerful navies at arm’s length.

“They’re very good at what they do,” Mullen said. “They’re very well-armed; tactically, they’re very good.

“So once they get to the point where they can board, it becomes very difficult to get them off, because clearly, now, they hold hostages. The question then becomes, well, what do you do about the hostages, and that’s where the standoff is. That’s a national question to ask, based on the flag of the vessel, and the countries by and large have been paying the ransom that the pirates have asked.”

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Iraqi parliament debates security pact