The United States won't rush to quit Iraq in the wake of Tuesday's mid-term elections, but it is possible Washington may soon adopt a new strategy of "phased troop withdrawals" leading to an exit before the 2008 presidential elections.
Robert Gates, the former CIA director, who was selected on Wednesday to succeed Donald Rumsfeld as Secretary of Defence, discussed just such a scenario 18 months ago during a seminar at the Panetta Institute at California State University in Monterey.
During a round-table discussion with Leon Panetta, chief of staff to former President Bill Clinton, and Sandy Berger, former national security advisor, Mr. Gates expressed his hope for a relatively rapid withdrawal of U.S. troops. "We all hope that it will be quick," he said.
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