Danish and British troops leaving Iraq, Bush’s ‘coalition of the willing’ collapsing

Translated from Dutch NOS TV:

Great Britain and Denmark will withdraw troops from Iraq.

London will bring home 1600 of 7100 soldiers.

The Danish want to bring all 460 soldiers home.

The withdrawal is planned for the coming months.

Bad news for George W. Bush, and for his escalation ‘surge’ plans in Iraq (see also here).

Also bad news for Howard in Australia.

After many countries already earlier withdrew their armed forces from Iraq, now even the Rightist government of Denmark, one of the last rats to leave Bush’s sinking ship, withdraws all soldiers.

Not that the symbolic number of 460 Danish soldiers really influenced the big military picture in Iraq … though they did contribute to torturing Iraqi civilians.

That even poodle Blair, due to the strength of anti-war ideas in Britain, now withdraws some soldiers whom Bush needs for his ‘surge’, says quite something.

See also here.

And here.

Army wanted bigger pullout than Blair: here.

Update: Lithuania wants to withdraw its 53 soldiers from Iraq as well.