The US and Iraq Are in the Final Stages of Agreement Signing: Media

The authorities of the United States and Iraq are close to reaching an agreement on the withdrawal of the troops of the international coalition led by Washington from the territory of the Arab Republic. This was reported by the Emirati newspaper The National.

“The US and Iraq are now in the final stages of signing an agreement,” said Jawad al-Boulani, a member of the Iraqi delegation in negotiations in Washington.

As he noted, both sides have created the impression that the mission of these troops is approaching its end.

According to sources close to the Iraqi government, Baghdad and Washington have agreed to begin the partial withdrawal of American troops deployed in Iraq within the framework of the coalition mission. A portion of international and American forces will remain in the territory of the Arab Republic based on new security agreements. One of the tasks of the remaining troops may be to prepare Iraqi security forces.

Meanwhile, according to sources interviewed by The National, the presence of coalition forces at the al-Harir airbase in the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan remains a point of contention. The US insists that their presence there is necessary to coordinate actions against the forces of the Islamic State terrorist group in Syria. In turn, the Iraqi authorities claim that they did not agree to this in 2014, when the international coalition's troops were deployed in the Arab country.

On January 5, 2020, the Iraqi parliament passed a resolution demanding the withdrawal of all foreign forces from the republic. In March 2021, the Iraqi authorities stated that the number of American troops in the country does not exceed 2,500.

On December 22, 2021, the Chief of Staff of the Iraqi Armed Forces announced that the international coalition had completed the operation to withdraw its troops from the territory of the republic, but maintained its presence at the level of military advisors. In February, Yahya Rasoul, the official representative of the Iraqi Armed Forces' Chief Commander, described the forces of the US-led coalition as a destabilizing factor. He emphasized that Baghdad is compelled to seriously consider the issue of the prompt cessation of the coalition's mission in the country.

On July 23, Reuters reported that the Iraqi authorities intend to achieve the withdrawal of coalition troops by September 2025.