(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – Many adults in the United States agree with the scheduled timetable for the end of the coalition effort, according to a poll by Princeton Survey Research Associates International released by Newsweek. 46 per cent of respondents think the plan announced by U.S. president Barack Obama is correct.
(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – Many adults in the United States agree with the scheduled timetable for the end of the coalition effort, according to a poll by Princeton Survey Research Associates International released by Newsweek. 46 per cent of respondents think the plan announced by U.S. president Barack Obama is correct.
Conversely, 28 per cent of respondents want U.S. troops to come home sooner than 2010, while 19 per cent would keep U.S. soldiers in Iraq for longer.
The coalition effort against Saddam Hussein’s regime was launched in March 2003. At least 4,266 American soldiers have died during the military operation, and more than 31,100 troops have been wounded in action.
In December 2005, Iraqi voters renewed their National Assembly. In May 2006, Shiite United Iraqi Alliance member Nouri al-Maliki officially took over as prime minister.
In November 2008, Iraq’s National Assembly ratified the Status of Forces Agreement with the United States. The document establishes that coalition combat forces will withdraw from Iraqi cities by Jun. 30, 2009, and will be completely out of Iraq by Dec. 31, 2011. The agreement can be revised if the Iraqi prime minister believes Iraq is not stable enough.
On Feb. 27, U.S. president Barack Obama announced his intention to end the combat mission in Iraq by Aug. 31, 2010.
Last month, Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper discussed his views on the coalition effort, saying, "We have been losing ground the last several years. Ultimately whether it was right or wrong, the war in Iraq was a diversion from the central, the original mission to Afghanistan."
Polling Data
Barack Obama has announced that he will remove most U.S. troops from Iraq by the end of next year, that is, 2010. Which of the following best describes your opinion of Obama’s timetable for troop withdrawal from Iraq?
|
It is about right |
46% |
|
U.S. troops should come home sooner |
28% |
|
U.S. troops should stay longer |
19% |
|
Not sure |
7% |
Source: Princeton Survey Research Associates International / Newsweek
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 1,003 American adults, conducted on Apr. 1 and Apr. 2, 2009. Margin of error is 3.5 per cent.
