"Blair denies Iraq pull-out date"
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4279618.stm
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Originally Posted by BBC News
Prime Minister Tony Blair has denied reports that British soldiers will start withdrawing from Iraq next May.
Any exit strategy "depends on the job being done", he told BBC's Sunday AM.
However, Defence Secretary John Reid has hinted the handover to Iraqi forces - followed by the gradual withdrawal of UK troops - could begin next year.
Mr Blair also said he had not expected the "ferocity" with which elements in the Middle East would try to disrupt the political process.
But he said despite insurgents infiltrating the Iraqi police force and the escalating violence in the country, he would have made the same decision to invade Iraq.
"There is no doubt in my mind at all that what is happening in Iraq now is crucial for the future of our own security, never mind the security of Iraq or the greater Middle East," he added.
(snip)
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