London: Britain is to delay a planned reduction of forces in southern Iraq, following recent unrest around Basra, Defence Secretary Des Browne said today.

The move will likely be welcomed by the United States, which is reportedly counting on British forces to help maintain order in southern Iraq while the "surge" centred on Baghdad continues.

The British government announced last October that it hoped to reduce troop levels to 2,500 in the spring, but that has been called into question by recent events, said Browne.

"It is prudent that we pause any further reductions," he told the House of Commons, saying there were currently around 4,000 British soldiers in southern Iraq.

"It is absolutely right that military commanders review plans when the conditions on the ground change," he added.

"At this stage we intend to keep our forces at the current levels of around 4,000,as we work with our coalition partners and with the Iraqis to assess our future requirements."

Under former prime minister Tony Blair, Britain controversially joined the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, but his successor Gordon Brown has made clear his strategy of cutting troop numbers since taking office last June.

The move has led to reported strains between London and the administration of US President George W Bush, which last year launched a "surge" strategy aimed at reducing violence still gripping the country five years after the war.

The 4,000 British troops are mostly stationed at Basra airport where they withdrew to after leaving their Basra Palace base in the centre of the southern port city in early September.

Source : PTI