Washington - General David Petraeus, the top commander in Iraq, said Monday that the United States could begin withdrawing forces to the pre-surge levels by next summer. The presence of US forces in Iraq could be reduced to the number prior to the troop increase ordered by President George W Bush earlier this year to combat rising sectarian violence, Petraeus said, in a crucial report to Congress.
"The military objectives of the surge are in large measure being met," Petraeus said.
Bush's expansion of American soldiers in Iraq brought the number from about 130,000 to more than 160,000.
Petraeus said US and Iraqi forces have "dealt significant blows" to al-Qaeda operations in Iraq and violent attacks have dropped, and in the latest two weeks have declined to the lowest level in more than a year.
Petraeus' highly anticipated testimony will be crucial for shaping the debate on the unpopular war in Iraq amid growing calls from Democratic members of Congress to begin troop withdrawals.
The two Democratic chairmen presiding over the hearing, Representatives Ike Skelton and Tom Lantos, were sceptical about whether the situation in Iraq can be turned around with an Iraqi government that has made little progress toward reconciling differences between Iraqi ethnic and religious groups.
"No one can make the case the that Iraqi government has made great strides," Skelton before Petraeus' testified.
Petraeus appeared with the US ambassador in Iraq, Ryan Crocker, in front of the House military and foreign policy committees as part of a congressionally mandated report. Petraeus will submit his assessment to the White House later this week.
Petraeus emphasized that his testimony was based on his own judgement and was not cleared by the White House. In the week before his testimony, Petraeus was greeted in Washington by charges that he would announce conclusions to serve Bush's political needs.
One left-wing group called MoveOn.org ran an advertisement in the New York Times accusing him of betraying the American people by not speaking truthfully about the conflict. The ad made a play on his name, "General Betray-US."
Republicans criticized the organization and Democrats for questioning Petraeus' integrity.
"I think it's an outrage that we spent the last week prepping the ground, bashing the credibility of a general officer whose trademark is integrity," Representative Duncan Hunter, the ranking Republican on the House Armed Services Committee, said.
Bush's troop surge has produced some security improvements in parts of Iraq - an achievement highly touted by the Bush administration. But hoped-for political progress among Iraqi factions has been elusive.
White House spokesman Tony Snow told reporters Monday the report by Petraeus and Crocker was independent and had not been vetted by Bush.
He lashed out against Democratic critics who charged that Petraeus had too rosy a view of progress in Iraq and was doing Bush's bidding.
"The president certainly has had conversations with them and has been briefed by them. But this is not something where the White House ... is going to tell these guys what to do," Snow told reporters.
"He was briefed by them last week and he's had conversations. He said he liked what he heard from them. But on the other hand, the White House has not played any role in putting together the testimony," he said.
