LONDON, 14 October 2005 — British troops could remain in Iraq for another decade, according to Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, although the government of Prime Minister Tony Blair would like to withdraw them “in a matter of a very limited number of years”.

Straw last night admitted for the first time that it could take Iraq up to 10 years to become a stable democracy. Straw was participating in a heated debate on Iraq and the newly-published Terrorism Bill on BBC 2’s flagship Newsnight program with a specially invited group of guests, including parents of at least two British soldiers killed in Iraq.

British government ministers have repeatedly stated that British soldiers will remain in the country until it is stable. Straw, not surprisingly, did not say whether he expected British troops to have to stay in Iraq for as long as five or 10 years. He said his estimate for stability in Iraq was “optimistic” and based on the experiences of other countries after wars.

“I am optimistic about Iraq, I think in five to 10 years we will see it becoming stable. I think if you compare nation-building in other situations after the war in Europe, building up stable nations from the collapse of the Soviet Union, look at Afghanistan, I think that’s a reasonable prospect,” said Straw.

The Liberal Democrat spokesman Sir Menzies Campbell said Straw’s comments suggested the government had “no credible exit strategy”. However, the parents of British servicemen killed in Iraq confronted Straw and demanded the immediate withdrawal of UK troops and accused Blair of misleading the British people on the reasons why he sent the country to war. A BBC poll yesterday showed that 54 percent of British people would like to see a phased withdrawal of British troops in Iraq and a departure date should be set. Of this, some 30 percent would like to see troops withdrawn immediately.

But Straw insisted that, assuming that the UN mandate for the deployment is renewed at the end of this year, British troops would remain in Iraq until the Iraqi government is ready to take over responsibility for the country’s security.

Fareed Sabri, UK representative of the Sunni-based Islamic Party of Iraq, suggested that the Baghdad government would like British troops to remain for as long as possible in order to fight their battles for them. This was a dangerous strategy and could further undermine the stability of Iraq.

Sabri, whose party had just agreed to participate in the forthcoming referendum on the Iraqi constitution, after the various parties agreed to some minor modifications yesterday, told Straw that it was wrong for the US and UK to invade and occupy Iraq. The Islamic Party of Iraq would like to see the withdrawal of US, UK and coalition troops from the country to be replaced by a UN force comprised largely of troops from member countries of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) states.

Straw rejected suggestions that the UK occupation of Iraq and British foreign policy relating to Muslim causes such as Palestine, Kashmir, Chechnya and Afghanistan was to blame for the 7/7 suicide bombings on the London transport system in which 56 people died. A Newsnight poll conducted yesterday revealed that 74 percent of British people believed that the UK’s involvement in the Iraq War did make the country a bigger target for terrorist attacks.

Meanwhile, the UK Ministry of Defense yesterday came under severe criticism from the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee for leaving British troops without vital equipment because of the MOD’s “woeful” management of major procurement projects.