Per Reuters, the DOD will rotate 39,000 service members to Iraq later this year, keeping troop strength at roughly pre-surge levels.
The United States has 155,000 troops in Iraq and is in the process of reducing that number to around 140,000 by mid-July, ending a "surge" of forces ordered by President George W. Bush last year to curb rampant violence.
While no decision has been made about future U.S. force levels, the deployment orders announced on Monday will ensure that commanders could keep 15 brigade combat teams plus support personnel there through fiscal 2009 if needed.
"All of these forces that we're talking about today are replacement forces," said Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman.
The troops will likely be sent to Iraq starting in October, the first month of the 2009 fiscal year.
The 155th Brigade Combat Team, based in Mississippi, heads over there beginning in June.
New Iraq deployments could maintain U.S. force level | Special Coverage | Reuters
