Operation Iraqi Freedom: Strategies, Approaches, Results, and Issues for Congress
"Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) was launched on March 20, 2003. The
immediate goal, as stated by the Bush Administration, was to remove the regime,
including destroying its ability to use weapons of mass destruction or to make them
available to terrorists. The broad, longer-term objective included helping Iraqis build “a new Iraq that is prosperous and free.”1 In October 2002, Congress had authorized the President to use force against Iraq, to “defend the national security of the United States against the continuing threat posed by Iraq,” and to “enforce all relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions regarding Iraq...”

The next major marker in the development of U.S. Iraq strategy and practice is
likely to be the update reports to the Congress from U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan
Crocker and Commanding General of the Multi-National Force-Iraq (MNF-I)
General David Petraeus, scheduled for April 8 and 9, 2008. A second major marker
is a security agreement between the governments of the United States and Iraq,
expected to be achieved by July 31, 2008, and to include the parameters for the
presence of U.S. personnel in Iraq after December 31, 2008."