President Bush got a boost Wednesday from his most reliable foreign ally: Australian Prime Minister John Howard pledged to keep hundreds of Australian troops in Iraq as long as the United States needs them."They will not be reduced or withdrawn," Howard declared in a joint press conference here with Bush. "We believe that progress is being made in Iraq, difficult though it is. And we do not believe this is the time to be setting any proposals for a scaling down of Australian forces … A close ally and friend such as Australia should be providing the maximum presence and indication of support."
Bush, who stopped in Iraq on his way to a regional economic conference in Sydney, insisted again that the security situation is improving in Iraq and left open the possibility that some U.S. troops could be brought home.
"If conditions still improve the way they have been improving, we may be able to provide the same security with fewer troops," Bush said. But he said he was waiting for a report next week by the U.S. commander in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker before making any decision on troop levels.
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