US lawmakers will soon vote on a proposal to provide only limited funding for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan with the condition President George W. Bush begin withdrawing troops from the country, the top Democrat in the House of Representatives said.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the bill to be taken up within days would deliver 50 billion dollars for a four-month period instead of the 196 billion requested by the president.

"This is not a blank check for the president, this is providing funding for the troops, limited to particular purposes, with a short time frame," Pelosi told a press conference.

The proposal would require the withdrawal or "redeployment" of most troops in Iraq to begin immediately "with a goal of ending it within a year," Pelosi said.

Under the bill, a smaller force would remain behind with a scaled-back mission to provide security for US troops and diplomats, combat Al-Qaeda, and deliver "limited support for the Iraqi security forces," she said.

The Defense Department on Wednesday urged Congress to approve the president's 196 billion dollar budget proposal, saying the funds were crucial in the US "war on terror."

Despite holding a majority in Congress, the Democrats have so far failed to force Bush to start a definitive withdrawal of US troops from Iraq to fulfill their goal of ending the war by 2009.

Bush has rejected previous attempts to set a timetable for a US pullout and the Democrats have lacked enough votes to override his veto.

"Democrats in Congress will be proposing once again a new direction" for the unpopular war, Pelosi said.

She said the Democrats' plan was in clear contrast to Bush's approach, accusing the president of pushing for a massive military commitment in Iraq.

"The president is proposing at least a 10-year war, to the tune of tens of thousand of troops in Iraq over a long period of time, costing trillions of dollars," she said.

AMSI Net- MEO