PRETTY MUCH OLD NEWS

But this time it's a little more forceful -

Senior Iraqi backs Obama withdrawal plan
Thu Nov 6, 2008 9:46pm EST

By Peter Graff and Mariam Karouny

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A senior Iraqi official on Thursday explicitly backed U.S. President-elect Barack Obama's plans to withdraw combat troops from the country by mid-2010, Baghdad's clearest endorsement yet of Obama's exit strategy.

Asked to comment on Obama's pledge to pull combat troops out within 16 months of taking office, National Security Adviser Mowaffaq al-Rubaie told Al-Arabiya television: "We think 16 months is good."

"Obama's presence at the head of the U.S. administration will give new blood, new thoughts and new plans. We want to be in a fundamental alliance with the United States," Rubaie said.