Levin Statement on the Proposed SFA/SOFA Agreement between the United States and Iraq

WASHINGTON – Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, issued the following statement on the proposed Strategic Framework Agreement and Status of Forces Agreement between the United States and Iraq following his conversation with Defense Secretary Gates on Thursday and the White House staff briefing Friday morning:

“It’s critical that our dedicated men and women in uniform serving in Iraq have full legal protections and are not subject to criminal prosecution in an Iraqi judicial system that does not meet due process standards. I intend to reserve judgment as to whether the proposed agreement includes safeguards adequate to meet this standard until I have an opportunity for a more complete review.

“The proposed agreement with Iraq includes strict deadlines for the pullback of U.S. forces from Iraqi cities and towns by next summer and the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq by the end of 2011. Clearly now the Administration is willing to accept such deadlines, despite the President’s past insistence that similar congressionally-proposed goals for the withdrawal of U.S. forces would be ‘setting a date for failure.’ The President’s reversal on the subject of a timetable is welcome and overdue.”