WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Using the gravity of the Oval Office as a backdrop, President Barack Obama said in a 17-minute televised address to war-weary Americans on Tuesday that it was "time to turn the page" on the unpopular Iraq war.
* Obama declared the formal end of the U.S. combat mission in Iraq but the reality is that there are still 50,000 U.S. troops in harm's way there. Combat units may have been relabeled "advisory and assistance" brigades but they are still heavily armed and may be called upon by the Iraqi government to help in counter-insurgency operations in the still volatile country.