New Australian PM plans Iraq withdrawal

CANBERRA, Australia, Nov. 30 (UPI) -- The prime minister-designate of Australia pledged the country will remove its 550 combat troops from Iraq by mid-2008.

Kevin Rudd, who promised a gradual troop withdrawal during his campaign, said he hasn't discussed the idea with U.S. officials but planned to remove his country's troops from Iraq by the middle of next year, the Voice of America reported Friday.

Rudd said he planned to discuss details of the pullout with the U.S. ambassador to the Australia.

About one-third of Australia's 1,500 troops in Iraq are engaged in combat operations. Most of the country's soldiers are working to improve security and training of Iraqi forces in the southern part of the country.

Outgoing Prime Minister John Howard had promised to keep all the Australian troops in Iraq until the mission was completed.

Rudd has called Howard's decision top send troops to Iraq the "single greatest error" of Australian foreign policy since its participation in the Vietnam War.