Gates says U.S. could consider Iraq troop cut this year

By Andrew Gray

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Defence Secretary Robert Gates said on Wednesday the United States could consider reducing troops in Iraq later this year if violence declined enough to let Iraqis advance with reconciliation.

Gates said a progress report in September from Army Gen. David Petraeus, the overall commander in Iraq, and the U.S. ambassador there would determine the future of the higher troop levels ordered by President George W. Bush in January.

"The outcome of that evaluation is not foreordained," Gates told the defence subcommittee of the Senate's Appropriations Committee.

"I think if we see some very positive progress and it looks like things are headed in the right direction, then that's the point at which I think we can begin to consider reducing some of these forces," Gates said.

Violence would not be eliminated, Gates said.

"The question is whether the level of violence is such that the political process can go forward in Iraq. And that then sets the stage for us to begin drawing down our troops," he said.

The buildup is highly controversial politically. As the 28,000 extra troops flow into Iraq, Democrats in the U.S. Congress are trying to pressure the administration to begin withdrawing forces from the country this year.

Later, Gates said there would be no "precipitous" troop movements after the September review, partly because any adjustment was a substantial logistical challenge.