President George W. Bush said Wednesday that U.S. efforts in Iraq are bearing fruit, and predicted that Iraqi forces will shoulder more of the responsibility this year and that U.S. force levels will drop. "Those who want to stop the progress of freedom are becoming more and more marginalized," Bush told reporters at the Pentagon after meeting with members of his national security team, led by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. "In January 2006, the mission is to continue to hand over more and more territory and more and more responsibility to Iraqi forces," said Bush, flanked by his top aides, including Vice President Dick Cheney and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. A year ago, Bush said, "only a handful" of Iraqis were trained and equipped to fight the insurgent forces. "Today, 125 combat battalions are fighting the enemy, and 50 of those are in the lead," he said. "That's progress." "As we see more of these Iraqi forces in the lead, we will be able to continue with our stated strategy that says as Iraqi forces stand up, we will stand down," Bush was quoted as saying by CNN.
