WASHINGTON, July 25 (RIA Novosti) - The U.S. House of Representatives passed a draft law Wednesday prohibiting the creation of long-term or permanent U.S. military bases in Iraq.
The draft law, which also prohibits the U.S. from controlling Iraqi crude reserves, passed 399 to 24.
In late May, the U.S. House and Senate voted to grant President Bush's request for nearly $100 billion in war spending for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan through September, but no timetable for the withdrawal of troops was set, as Democrats had sought.
The legislation, which passed 80 to 14 in the Senate and 280 to 142 in the House, effectively ended a protracted standoff between Congress and the White House over the issue of troop withdrawal in the president's favor, although it did require the Iraqi government to meet specific targets as a condition for continued American aid.
