A Billings solider says Iraqis are becoming more independent and he senses they will soon be able to maintain peace without U.S. troops.
Private First Class Chas Hagan returned to Billings Wednesday night after having been in Baghdad since December, where he serves as a paratrooper and truck driver with the 82nd Airborne.
The 2005 Billings Senior High School graduate joined the U.S. Army last year. Hagan says he's experiencing what American commanders told the President this week, that the country is experiencing low levels of violence.
"It's calmed down quite a bit. The Iraqi people there, they're more understanding. They're up to date, they're not like they used to be. It's been successful."
Hagan has seven more months to serve in Iraq and after his stop in Billings he'll return to Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
