The British Daily Telegraph newspaper reported Thursday that Britain was urging the United States to announce a timetable for withdrawing coalition troops from Iraq over the next 18 months or more.

As a new Iraqi government would take power after the Jan. 30 elections, British officials believe that time is ripe for the coalition forces to announce an "indicative timetable" for their departure, the paper said.

Such an announcement would be the first time the coalition had set a clear target for leaving, even though there would be no firm deadline and the withdrawal would depend on the gradual ability ofIraq's armed forces to take over responsibility for security, the paper added.

"Giving a timetable would be an important political signal thatwe intend to leave Iraq," the paper quoted a well-placed government source as saying on condition of anonymity. "The main Iraqi parties are already talking about when coalition forces should be drawn down. America knows it will have to deal with the issue soon."

According to the paper, the British government was hopeful that US President George W. Bush would agree to make a formal announcement within two or three month.

Until now, the United States has resisted committing itself to a pullout date for its troops in Iraq.

Source: Xinhua