WASHINGTON – President Bush’s senior advisers on Iraq have recommended he stand by his current war strategy, and he is unlikely to order more than a symbolic cut in troops before the end of the year, administration officials said today.

The recommendations from the military commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus, and American Ambassador Ryan Crocker come despite independent government findings today that Baghdad has not met most of the political, military, and economic markers set by Congress.

Mr. Bush appears set on maintaining the central elements of the policy he announced in January, one senior administration official said after discussions with participants in Mr. Bush’s briefings during his surprise visit to an air base in Iraq yesterday.

Although the addition of 30,000 troops and the focus on increasing security in Baghdad would not be permanent, Mr. Bush is inclined to give it more time in hopes of extending military gains in Baghdad and the formerly restive Anbar province, officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity to describe decisions coming as part of the White House report on Iraq due to Congress next week.

The plan they described is fraught with political risk. Republican leaders today suggested the GOP may be willing to support keeping troops in the region through spring. Senator McConnell told reporters he would like to ensure a long-term American presence in the Middle East to fight Al Qaeda and deter aggression from Iran.

“And I hope that this reaction to Iraq and the highly politicized nature of dealing with Iraq this year doesn’t end up in a situation where we just bring all the troops back home and thereby expose us, once again, to the kind of attacks we’ve had here in the homeland or on American facilities,” Mr. McConnell, Republican of Kentucky, said.

With yesterday’s back-to-back review sessions in Iraq, Mr. Bush has now heard from all the military chiefs, diplomats, and other advisers he planned to consult before making a widely anticipated report to Congress by September 15. Messrs. Petraeus and Crocker are to testify before Congress on their recommendations next week.

American would be hard-pressed to maintain the current level of 130,000 troops in Iraq indefinitely, but Mr. Bush is not expected to order more than a slight cut before the end of the year, officials said.

Mr. Bush himself suggested that modest troop cuts may be possible if military successes continue, but he gave no timeline or specific numbers. Options beyond a symbolic cut this year include cutting the tour of duty for troops in Iraq from 15 months back to the traditional 12 months, one official said. If adopted, that change would not come before the spring.

A Pentagon official said Mr. Petraeus has not specifically recommended trimming tours by three months. Mr. Bush’s troop increase will end by default in April or May, when one of the added brigades is slated to leave, unless Mr. Bush makes other changes to hold the number steady.

Republican support could hinge on Mr. Petraeus’ testimony next week. If he can convince lawmakers that the security gains won in recent months are substantial and point toward a bigger trend, GOP members might be willing to hold out until next spring. They also might be persuaded if Mr. Bush promises some small troop drawdowns by the end of the year, as was suggested to the White House by Senator Warner of Virginia, an influential Republican on security matters.

“It is critical that we continue working with the Iraqis to solidify the gains that have been made since the inception of the surge, and our troops are on track to do just that,” Rep. John Boehner, Republican of Ohio, said today.

Whether GOP rank-and-file lawmakers — many of whom face tough elections next year — stand by Mr. Bush remains to be seen and will be crucial in staving off Democratic legislation setting a deadline for troop withdrawals. Democrats hold a razor-thin majority in the Senate and have been unable to pass veto-proof bills forcing Mr. Bush to pull out troops.

Also today, the Government Accountability Office, Congress’ investigative and auditing arm, reported that Iraq has failed to meet 11 of its 18 political and security goals.

The study was slightly more upbeat than initially planned. After receiving substantial resistance from the White House, the GAO determined that four benchmarks — instead of two — had been partially met.

But the GAO stuck with its original contention that only three goals out of the 18 had been fully achieved. The goals met include establishing joint security stations in Baghdad, ensuring minority rights in the Iraqi legislature and creating support committees for the Baghdad security plan.

The congressional auditors paint a bleaker picture of progress in Iraq than offered by Mr. Bush in July, and their report comes at a critical time in the debate over the war.

Senator Coleman, Republican of Minnesota, returning from a weekend trip to Iraq, said today he now supports a colleague’s plan calling for bringing back some troops by the end of the year to send a message to the Iraqi government.

Mr. Coleman said he was impressed that American forces have made parts of Iraq more secure. But he said he wasn’t impressed by the government of Iraq, and supported the plan by Senator Warner to bring back 5,000 troops by the end of the end of the year.

“I think the unmistakable message has to be sent to the Shiite leadership that there is no blank check for Iraq,” Mr. Coleman told reporters on a conference call.

Mr. Coleman faces a tough re-election next year, and his Democratic opponents have been criticizing him for opposing withdrawing troops from Iraq.

Democrats said the GAO report showed that Mr. Bush’s decision to send more troops to Iraq was failing because Baghdad was not making the political progress needed to tamp down sectarian violence.

“No matter what spin we may hear in the coming days, this independent assessment is a failing grade for a policy that simply isn’t working,” Senator Kerry, Democrat of Massachusetts.

The report does not make any substantial policy recommendations, but says future administration reports “would be more useful to the Congress” if they provided more detailed information.