Petraeus says Iraq too fragile for troop cuts

In his opening statement, Levin said that Bush would remove needed pressure on the Iraqi government if he decides to halt the drawdown of U.S. troops.

"An announcement of an open-ended pause in troop reductions, starting in July, would simply send the wrong message to the Iraqi leaders," he said.

Democrats have acknowledged that they are more or less helpless in trying to force Bush's hand on the war. While anti-war legislation has been able to pass the House, it repeatedly sinks in the Senate, where Democrats lack the 60 votes needed to overcome procedural hurdles.

They contend, however, that come fall dissatisfied voters will head to the polls and put more Democrats in power, possibly including an anti-war president. In last month's Associated Press-Ipsos poll, only 31 percent said they approve of the job Bush is doing on Iraq.

Violence is down
For now, Petraeus faces a dramatically different political landscape than last fall when support for the war had been eroding steadily among Republicans. Petraeus' testimony helped prevent Republican defections at the time. And since then, a significant drop in violence has helped stave off legislation ordering troops home.

Recent statistics reviewed by the AP show that while violence in Iraq is still down substantially, there have been spikes in both deaths and attacks since the slow withdrawal of U.S. troops began in December.

Iraq war timeline Key political and military moments since the 2003 invasion

The internal strife was underscored by a rise in sectarian violence among Iraqis in March, the first such monthly increase since last July.

Defense officials also warned Monday of another likely spike in attacks this week, as U.S. forces strike back at Shiite militia fighters in Baghdad's Sadr City district. And officials also said there are indications that al-Qaida in Iraq is looking for an opportunity to reassert its influence in the Baghdad region.

Petraeus' presentation included statistics reflecting the reduction in violence over the past seven months.

Pressed by Virginia Republican Sen. John Warner whether the U.S. sacrifice — 4,000 dead and billions of dollars spent — has been worth it, Petraeus said it has been.

"Senator, I do believe it is worth it, or I would not have, I guess, accepted — I mean, you do what you're ordered to do, but you sometimes are asked whether you would like to, or are willing to take on a task," he said.

Also this week, possibly on Thursday when Bush addresses the nation on the war, the administration plans to announce that soldiers will spend no longer than 12 months at a time in combat, a decrease of three months in current combat tours.

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