Britain ends combat work in Iraq
The war was deeply unpopular with the British. Brown spoke of a new phase of bilateral ties.
LONDON - British military operations in Iraq ended yesterday, a month ahead of schedule, closing a six-year mission that cost the lives of 179 British soldiers and was deeply unpopular in Britain.
"Today Iraq is a success story. We owe much of that to the efforts of British troops," Prime Minister Gordon Brown said at a news conference in London with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
"Our mission has not always been an easy one; many have said that we would fail," Brown said. "Britain can be proud of our legacy that we leave there."
Britain's military mission, which began with the March 2003 invasion of Iraq, formally ended as its 20th Armored Brigade handed over its duties to the U.S. military in the oil-rich southern city of Basra.
The Iraq war has been deeply divisive in Britain and was a key reason Tony Blair stepped down as prime minister in June 2007 after a decade in office. His close partnership with former President George W. Bush, and enthusiastic support of the war, had steadily eroded his popularity.
Brown has taken a more muted approach to the war, clearly expressing support for British troops while they were in Basra but stressing the need for Britain to reduce and ultimately eliminate its combat presence there.
At the height of combat operations in the months after the U.S.-led invasion, Britain had 46,000 troops in Iraq. Of the 4,000 who remain, most will leave Iraq in the coming weeks, and about 400 from the navy and royal marines will stay to help train Iraqi naval forces, officials said.
Appearing with Maliki, Brown said Britain and Iraq would begin a new phase of bilateral relations. "Today we are taking steps to strengthen and deepen our relationship and to make it a long-term partnership of equals," he said.
Brown said Britain and Iraq would sign a new agreement about "the future role that we can plan in training and protecting the oil supplies of Iraq." That agreement will be a bilateral accord and not involve any U.N. resolution, he said. "This is part of a new, deeper relationship between our two countries."
Part of that new relationship will be economic. Maliki was in London for a business conference designed to attract investment to his country.
Yesterday's announcement is unlikely to end debate about the Iraq war in Britain, where there have been widespread calls for an independent inquiry into the country's role.
David Cameron, leader of the opposition Conservative Party, called for a full-scale inquiry similar to one carried out by former ambassador Oliver Franks after the Falklands War in 1982.
"After years of foot-dragging, I believe it is the time for the government to announce a proper Franks-style inquiry," Cameron said. ". . . There are vital lessons to learn, and we need to learn them rapidly."
Earlier yesterday, Defense Secretary John Hutton led a memorial service in Basra for the 234 troops who died in coalition operations there, including 179 British soldiers and others from the United States, Italy, the Netherlands, Denmark and Romania.
"It's been a long and hard campaign. There's been no question about that, and we've paid a very high price," Hutton said. "But I think when the history is written of this campaign, they will say of the British military, 'We did a superb job,' as we would expect them to, and we should be very proud of what they have done here."