The president of the United States, speaking on March 16:

THE PRESIDENT: "Well, actually I called Silvio Berlusconi on another matter, which may or may not come up during this press conference. It's -- I'll give you a hint. I called him about the World Bank, and -- (laughter) -- and discussed my nominee, and -- but he brought up the issue of Italian troops in Iraq and said, first of all, he wanted me to know that there was no change in his policy, that, in fact, any withdrawals would be done in consultation with allies and would be done depending upon the ability of Iraqis to defend themselves. And I said, are you sure I can say this to the press corps that will be wanting to know what took place in our conversation? He said, absolutely."