US anger at Brits' move out of Basra
Michael Smith and Sarah
BRITAIN is preparing to hand over control of Basra to the Iraqi army as early as next month, sparking renewed claims from the US that the British are preparing to "cut and run".
The Iraqi army is on course to take control of Basra province by autumn - with October seen as the earliest point at which it would be ready - according to Whitehall officials.
It could allow Gordon Brown to announce the handover in his widely expected statement on Iraq to the Commons when MPs return from the summer recess.
The handover would enable most of the 5500 British soldiers to leave Iraq, although negotiations are under way to base some troops in Kuwait.
According to defence sources in Washington, US commanders in Baghdad have accepted that British troops are on their way out of Iraq, prompting further criticism this weekend from American military commentators.
Frederick Kagan, of the American Enterprise Institute, said it was "hard to imagine" conditions that would allow a handover next month.
General Jack Keane, an architect of the US troop surge, said the handover plans had "much more to do with conditions in the UK" than those in Iraq.
Government attempts to play down the simmering row with the US were hampered by two British military commanders' fierce criticism of Washington's policies.
Major General Tim Cross, the top British officer involved in post-war Iraq planning, said he raised serious concerns with then US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld that the country could descend into chaos.
But Mr Rumsfeld "ignored" or "dismissed" his warnings, he told the Sunday Mirror newspaper.
In 2003, General Cross was the deputy head of the coalition's Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance.
"Right from the very beginning, we were all very concerned about the lack of detail that had gone into the post-war plan - and there is no doubt that Rumsfeld was at the heart of that process," he said.
"I had lunch with Rumsfeld in Washington before the invasion in 2003 and raised concerns about the need to internationalise the reconstruction of Iraq and work closely with the United Nations.
"He didn't want to hear that message."
Last weekend, the former head of the British army, Mike Jackson, also criticised the US's handling of post-war Iraq.
Sir Mike described the approach taken by Mr Rumsfeld in post-war Iraq as "intellectually bankrupt" and said Mr Rumsfeld was "one of the most responsible for the current situation in Iraq".
The growing irritation in Washington will only be increased by renewed claims that the British have done a deal with the Shia militias to ease their way out of Basra.
The lawyer for a Briton held without trial in Basra detailed a number of secret meetings in which the British agreed to a phased release of militants - including known killers.
The Ministry of Defence denied any such deal, but a senior defence source said secret talks mediated by the Iraqi special police had been "going on for weeks" to ensure a safe withdrawal from Basra Palace.
The Prime Minister has promised President George W. Bush that the British will continue to monitor the progress of the Iraqi troops for the foreseeable future. That will require about 2500 troops, including a 1500-man quick-reaction force.
Officials emphasised that a number of different plans were under consideration but senior military commanders were pushing to base the force in Kuwait.
Whitehall sources confirmed last week that Britain was speaking to the Kuwaiti Government about "moving some of the functions currently carried out at Basra airport to Kuwait".
Original article posted here.
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