Petraeus Looking to Improve Iraqi Forces

U.S. Commander in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus, speaks during an interview with The Associated Press at the Pentagon in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 13, 2007. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert) (Gerald Herbert - AP)

WASHINGTON -- The top U.S. commander in Iraq said Thursday he is pursuing new ways to fix major problems with the Iraqi national police, while rejecting an independent commission's finding that the police are so tainted by sectarian bias that they should be disbanded.

In an Associated Press interview, Gen. David Petraeus acknowledged that some elements of the national police are riddled with problems, but he praised other elements for helping fight the insurgency.

From behind a small desk in a windowless Pentagon office used by visiting commanders, Petraeus also revealed that he is looking for new ways to reduce the size of the U.S. force in Iraq _ beyond President Bush's plan for bringing home at least 21,500 combat troops between now and next July. Petraeus said he is looking at such possibilities as streamlining the logistics force and headquarters units.

He would not say how many extra troops he would like to cut beyond the already announced combat brigades, saying the broad review began just a few weeks ago, and "it's going to take some time to sort out."

His Washington appearance came amid escalating calls in Congress for an end to the war and a shift in the mission of U.S. forces away from combat roles and into one focused more on training and counterterrorism. In two full days of testimony on Capitol Hill, the general asserted that it's too early for that transition.

In the interview, Petraeus gave no indication that he intended to follow the recommendation of the commission headed by retired Marine Gen. James Jones that the 25,000-strong national police be scrapped. But he stressed that problems in the Interior Ministry, which oversees the police, need to be addressed immediately.

He said he has appointed an adviser, Col. H.R. McMaster, to work with the ministry, which oversees the national police and other internal security branches, to review structural and leadership problems.

He said he saw a need for immediate corrective action in the national police, but he was not specific.

"That's an Iraqi decision, and it's actually a pretty important component in their security force structure," he said. "And there are some decent units in that structure."

"I think we need to see it's not the entire national police" force that has severe problems, noting that the Iraqi government has already replaced a many national police commanders.

"There really are key elements, certain elements, in the national police about which we have serious concerns and so we've got to focus on those and determine what is going to be the way forward with those elements," Petraeus said. "Are they going to fly straight or not? ... And if not, that's something we're going to have sit down with the prime minister and minister of interior and have a good discussion."

Petraeus also poured cold water on another of the Jones commission's recommendations: that the complex process now used for deciding when to return individual provinces to Iraqi government control be scrapped. The commission said it would be preferable to simply turn over all provinces to Iraqi control now.