, U.S. soldiers in Iraq urged new Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Dec. 21 to send reinforcements but generals expressed concern that deploying more troops might delay the time when Iraqis take control.
Stung by defeat at mid-term elections last month, U.S. President George W. Bush is expected to announce a new strategy in January for the unpopular war, which has so far killed nearly 3,000 U.S. soldiers and tens of thousands of Iraqis.
Bush has said one option is a short-term increase in U.S. troop levels but that he had not yet made up his mind.
Gates, in his first week on the job after replacing Donald Rumsfeld, is consulting widely for advice on Iraq. After meeting U.S. commanders, he met Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and Defence Minister Abdel Qader Jassim on Dec. 21.
Gates told a news conference that he had emphasized Washington
