The Coalition of the Willing Shrinks

The coalition of the willing is about to get smaller.

Italy will start to withdraw its soldiers from Iraq (news - web sites) this September, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said on Tuesday, adding to the list of U.S. allies looking to cut their troop levels.

Italy isn't the only country pulling out:

Earlier on Tuesday, Bulgaria's president said his country should withdraw its 450 troops from Iraq by the end of this year after a Bulgarian soldier was accidentally killed by U.S. forces. A final decision is expected by the end of the month.

The Dutch government, defying pressure from Washington, has announced it will pull its troops from Iraq by mid-April, while Poland and Ukraine plan to withdraw their forces this year.

Our efforts to internationalize this are going backwards. And John Bolton's nomination to become U.N. Ambbasador can't be helping.