Italy Continues Troop Withdrawal in Iraq

Drip, drip, drip:

Dec. 15 (Bloomberg) -- Italy's government announced the withdrawal of a further 300 soldiers from Iraq in January, less than four month before Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi faces elections.

The reduction to 2,600 soldiers in Iraq comes three months after the first withdrawal of 300 troops, Italian Defense Minister Antonio Martino said today in a news conference in Rome. Italian troops have been in Iraq since the U.S.-led ousting in March 2003 of dictator Saddam Hussein.

Italy is not the first country in the "coalition of the willing" to withdraw but is certainly one of those with a more sizeable number of troops . Ten countries have already withdrawn, another three are gradually cutting back and at least two are only staying until 2006. Check Georgia10's post over at the Daily Kos for more.

When Bush repeats his mantra of staying in Iraq until "victory" is achieved, I wonder if these other countries are even included in the equation. I also wonder how the remaining members of the "coalition of the willing" justify their presence in Iraq to their citizens considering Bush's usual vague promises of "achieving victory" in this disastrous war.

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