Talks to withdraw US-led forces from Iraq may continue until US elections
US Army soldiers stand outside their armored vehicle on a joint base with Iraqi army south of Mosul, Iraq. Photo: Khalid Mohammed/AP
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – An Iraqi government official told Reuters that discussions between Iraq and the United States about the withdrawal of the US-led military coalition in Iraq would not be completed until after the US presidential elections in November.
After ISIS terrorists took over a large part of the country in 2014, Washington and Baghdad started discussions in January to re-evaluate the presence of the US-led coalition in Iraq.
With 2,500 soldiers, the US is helping local forces in Iraq avoid the return of ISIS groups.
The Iraqi Prime Minister, Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, said earlier that Iraq has not set a date for the swift and orderly negotiation of the withdrawal of US-led military forces from its territory, describing their presence as destabilizing considering the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
Prolonged demands for the withdrawal of the US-led coalition from Iraq by primarily Shiite Muslim groups, many of whom are connected to Iran, have gathered momentum following a series of US strikes on armed groups with ties to Iran that are also affiliated with the country’s official security services.
Fears that Iraq may once again become a place of regional conflict have been aroused by those strikes, which were carried out in retaliation for scores of drone and missile attacks on American soldiers since Israel began its war on Gaza.