MOSCOW, Jan. 31 (UPI) -- A top Russian security official has increased the diplomatic pressure on the United States to pull its troops out of Iraq.
Igor Ivanov, secretary of Russia's powerful Security Council, told a news conference at the RIA Novosti news agency that conditions in Iraq were "unacceptable." He said a schedule for the full evacuation of foreign military forces in Iraq -- in effect, the more than 140,000 U.S. troops currently operating there -- should be arranged and implemented as quickly as it could be done.
"There is no clear answer to the question of what should be done. But it is perfectly clear that the situation is unacceptable," Ivanov said according to the RIA Novosti report.
"We have always acted on the assumption that there should be negotiations with legitimate representatives of the Iraqi people, which should produce a plan for further action," he said.
Ivanov is one of the most trusted top deputies and advisers to Russian President Vladimir Putin in creating Russia's diplomatic and military policies. His statement marked a significant stepping up of the level of concern with which the Kremlin views the growing U.S. military presence in Iraq.
