http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070824/pl_nm/iraq_usa_pace_dc



  Gen. Pace may urge U.S. troop cut in Iraq: report



Fri Aug 24, 4:39 AM ET



WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The chairman of the U.S.

military's Joint Chiefs of Staff is expected to urge

President George W. Bush to cut U.S. troop levels in

Iraq next year, the Los Angeles Times said on Friday,

citing military and administration officials.



Marine Gen. Peter Pace, whose term as chairman expires

at the end of September, is expected to contend that

keeping significantly more than 100,000 troops in Iraq

through next year would severely strain the military

and compromise its ability to respond to other

threats, the newspaper said.



The top U.S. commander in Iraq, Army Gen. David

Petraeus, is to give his much-awaited recommendation

next month on how to proceed with military operations

in Iraq in a report expected to spark a firestorm of

debate on the unpopular war.



The administration has been fending off calls to start

withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq and has cited gains

from this year's increase of about 30,000 U.S. forces

that has brought troop levels there to about 160,000.



The Times said Pace will say it is strategically

important to reduce U.S. deployments in Iraq. It said

Pace will likely make that recommendation privately

instead of in a formal report.



A senior administration official told the Times that

the Joint Chiefs in recent weeks have voiced concerns

that the Iraq war has reduced the military's ability

to respond to other threats, such as Iran, the

newspaper said.



While the focus has been on Petraeus' upcoming

recommendation, the Joint Chiefs' responsibility of

ensuring the military's long-term well-being means

Pace "by law, has a big role in that and he will

provide his advice to the president," the newspaper

quoted a senior military official as saying.



But the newspaper said given the pressure to defer to

Petraeus' report, the Joint Chiefs could weaken their

view to Bush.



Bush did not nominate Pace for a second term as

chairman and he is to leave the position at the end of September.