U.S. troops by itself has led or will lead to
fundamental improvements in the security situation. It is important to
recognize that there are no risk-free alternatives available to the
United States at this time. Reducing our combat troop commitments in
Iraq, whenever that occurs, undeniably creates risks, but leaving
those forces tied down in Iraq indefinitely creates its own set of
security risks.

RECOMMENDATION 40: The United States should not make an open-ended
commitment to keep large numbers of American troops deployed in Iraq.

RECOMMENDATION 41: The United States must make it clear to the Iraqi
government that the United States could carry out its plans, including
planned redeployments, even if Iraq does not implement its planned
changes. America's other security needs and the future of our military
cannot be made hostage to the actions or inactions of the Iraqi
government.

RECOMMENDATION 42: We should seek to complete the training and
equipping mission by the first quarter of 2008, as stated by General
George Casey on October 24, 2006.

RECOMMENDATION 43: Military priorities in Iraq must change, with the
highest priority given to the training, equipping, advising, and
support mission and to counterterrorism operations.

RECOMMENDATION 44: The most highly qualified U.S. officers and
military personnel should be assigned to the imbedded teams, and
American teams should be present with Iraqi units down to the company
level. The U.S. military should establish suitable career-enhancing
incentives for these officers and personnel.

RECOMMENDATION 45: The United States should support more and better
equipment for the Iraqi Army by encouraging the Iraqi government to
accelerate its Foreign Military Sales requests and, as American combat
brigades move out of Iraq, by leaving behind some American equipment
for Iraqi forces.

Restoring the U.S. Military

We recognize that there are other results of the war in Iraq that have
great consequence for our nation. One consequence has been the stress
and uncertainty imposed on our military--the most professional and
proficient military in history. The United States will need its
military to protect U.S. security regardless of what happens in Iraq.
We therefore considered how to limit the adverse consequences of the
strain imposed on our military by the Iraq war.

U.S. military forces, especially our ground forces, have been
stretched nearly to the breaking po