The announcement comes after months of bilateral talks aimed at setting a timeline for a phased military withdrawal.
The United States and its coalition partners are set to reduce their military presence in Iraq, the Department of War has announced, citing a diminished threat posed by the ISIS terrorist group.
“In accordance with the President’s guidance and in alignment with the U.S.–Iraq Higher Military Commission and the joint statement issued on Sept. 27, 2024, the United States and Coalition partners will reduce its military mission in Iraq,” the department said in a Sept. 30 statement.
The planned reduction, it added, “reflects our combined success in fighting ISIS and marks an effort to transition to a lasting U.S.–Iraq security partnership in accordance with U.S. national interests, the Iraqi Constitution, and the U.S.-Iraq Strategic Framework Agreement.”
U.S. troops were first deployed to Iraq in 2003, when the United States invaded the country and overthrew the Baathist regime of Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.
U.S. forces withdrew in 2011, but returned three years later to fight ISIS, which had overrun vast swathes of Iraq and neighboring Syria.
Approximately 2,500 U.S. troops are currently deployed in Iraq, while about 900 others remain stationed in northeastern Syria.
The deployments are part of a U.S.-led coalition established in 2014 to fight ISIS.
Along with the United States, the coalition comprises dozens of countries, including the UK, France, Germany, Canada, and a number of Middle Eastern nations.
‘Responsible Transition’
Iraq has pushed for an end to the coalition’s mandate since early last year, when the United States launched a wave of deadly drone and missile strikes—including several in Baghdad—against Iraqi Shiite militia groups.
Washington regards several Iraqi Shiite militias, which are loosely affiliated with the Baghdad government, as terrorist groups.
The strikes coincided with a string of militant attacks on U.S. bases in Iraq and Syria.
After one U.S. strike killed a militia leader in Baghdad, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani declared his “firm position on ending the existence of the international coalition [in Iraq] after the justifications for its existence have ended.”
Shortly afterward, U.S. and Iraqi officials began holding talks with the stated aim of setting a timeline for the phased withdrawal from the country of coalition personnel.
