WASHINGTON, Nov 15: Republican senators on Tuesday defeated a Democratic move to set a timetable for a phased withdrawal of US troops from Iraq. After a 58-40 vote against the proposal, the Republican-dominated Senate overwhelmingly endorsed a weaker statement that urges the Bush administration to continue to encourage Iraqi troops to replace US soldiers.

The Democratic Party still hopes to use declining public support for the war, which has already claimed more than 2,000 American lives, to force President Bush to outline a plan for gradually withdrawing troops from Iraq.

Instead of adopting the non-binding Democratic measure for a gradual withdrawal of troops, Republicans adopted a statement that encourages the administration to consider 2006 as ‘a period of significant transition to full Iraqi sovereignty’.

It also urges the administration to ensure that Iraqi forces play a leading role in providing security and thus create the conditions for the phased redeployment of US forces.

By a 79-19 vote, the Senate approved the GOP-sponsored proposal, which did not call for the president to put forth a withdrawal timetable, as suggested by the Democrats.

Tuesday’s fast-paced developments underscored the political significance of the Iraq issue as US death toll climbs, public support plummets, the resistance continues and the price tag soars with no end in sight.

“They want an exit strategy, a cut-and-run exit strategy. What we are for is a successful strategy,” said Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, a Republican from Tennessee.

Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid, however, said the Democrats wanted to change the course because ‘we can’t stay the course’.