The Incredibly Shrinking Coalition of the Willing: Now Britain

In “The ‘Coalition of the Willing’ Comes to an End,” I wrote how very few countries are still supporting our mission in Iraq, and that of those few left most will be out by the end of the year when the United Nations mandate authorizing the presence of foreign military troops in Iraq expires.

Britain was the notable exception to the mass exodus. Britain still has about 4,000 troops in Iraq, mostly in Basra.

Today, the New York Times reports that “Britain’s remaining troops in Iraq will begin withdrawing from the country in March on a timetable that will aim to leave only a small training force of 300 to 400 by June…” an action that “will effectively end Britain’s role as the principal partner of the United States in the occupation of Iraq.”

Initially—during the invasion of Iraq—the British force numbered more than 46,000 troops.

Again, according to the Times:

The need to replace the departing British troops near Basra will place new strains on American commanders in Iraq. Since 2003, they have relied on British troops to maintain stability in southern Iraq and to guard the vital overland supply route from Kuwait, past Basra and on to central Iraq, where most of the American troops are based. Now, if the British reports are confirmed, those commanders will have to detach an American force of brigade strength to the south, just as they begin drawing down their own troop levels farther north.

British newspapers cite that 177 British military have been killed in action in Iraq, in a war that cost the British nearly $12 billion.