US-led coalition mission in Iraq to end by September 2025
PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative photo — U.S. Army Green Berets conduct a simulated night raid during a training exercise in Lopburi, Kingdom of Thailand, Feb. 28, 2020. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Anthony Bryant via U.S. Defense Visual Information Distribution Service)
(Reuters) -A U.S.-led coalition's military mission in Iraq will end by September 2025 and there will be a transition to bilateral security partnerships, the United States and Iraq said in a joint statement on Friday.
The U.S. has approximately 2,500 troops in Iraq and 900 in neighboring Syria as part of the coalition formed in 2014 to combat Islamic State as it rampaged through the two countries.
The joint statement provided few details, including how many U.S. troops would leave Iraq and from which bases.
In a briefing with reporters on Friday, a senior U.S. official said that the move was not a withdrawal and declined to say if any troops would even be leaving Iraq.
"I just want to foot stomp the fact that this is not a withdrawal. This is a transition. It's a transition from a coalition military mission to an expanded U.S.-Iraqi bilateral security relationship," the official said.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani initiated talks with Washington in January on the change. He has said that, while he appreciates their help, U.S. troops have become a magnet for instability, frequently targeted and responding with strikes often not coordinated with the Iraqi government.
Reuters has reported that the agreement would see hundreds of troops leave by September 2025, with the remainder departing by the end of 2026.
Under the plan, all coalition forces would leave the Ain al-Asad airbase in western Anbar province and significantly reduce their presence in Baghdad by September 2025.
U.S. and other coalition troops are expected to remain in Erbil. Other nations, including Germany, France, Spain, and Italy, contribute hundreds of troops to the coalition.
Officials told reporters that the U.S. mission in Syria would continue.
The drawdown will mark a notable shift in Washington's military posture in the Middle East.
While primarily focused on countering Islamic State, U.S. officials acknowledge the U.S. presence also serves as a strategic position against Iranian influence.
This position has grown more important as Israel and Iran escalate their regional confrontation, with U.S. forces in Iraq shooting down rockets and drones fired towards Israel in recent months, according to U.S. officials.
The agreement will likely present a political win for Sudani as he balances Iraq's position as an ally of both Washington and Tehran.
(Reporting by Idrees Ali, Phil Stewart; Additional reporting by Costas Pitas and Eric Beech; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
