The Prime Minister of Iraq has declared that American troops are no longer needed in the country. According to a joint statement from Iraq and the U.S., Washington plans to conclude its American-led international mission in Iraq within the next 12 months. This decision comes amid rising tensions across the broader Middle East, with ongoing hostilities between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, raising concerns about a potential escalation of the conflict in Gaza.
Following extensive discussions among the Iraqi Higher Military Commission, the U.S., and the international coalition, the American military mission will transition into a bilateral security partnership, as detailed in a statement from the U.S. State Department on Friday. This transition is expected to be completed by September 2025. However, coalition forces will maintain their presence in Syria’s oil-rich regions until at least September 2026 to mitigate the resurgence of the ISIS threat.
A commission will be established to outline the necessary mechanisms for this transition and ensure the safety of Coalition advisors still in Iraq. The Pentagon has emphasized that while the nature of the U.S. mission is evolving, it does not signify a complete withdrawal.
“Our footprint will change within the country,” said Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh at a press briefing on Friday. “No, the U.S. is not withdrawing from Iraq,” she added.
Baghdad has engaged in formal discussions regarding the withdrawal of U.S. troops for at least nine months, with calls for such a withdrawal from Iraqi officials extending over several years. In a recent interview with Bloomberg TV, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani stated that Iraq no longer requires U.S. military presence. “Iraq in 2024 is not the same as Iraq in 2014,” he remarked. “We have transitioned from wars to stability.”
The U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, conducted without United Nations authorization, was justified by claims that the nation possessed weapons of mass destruction—claims that were later disproven. The ensuing “shock and awe” bombing campaign devastated significant areas of Iraq, leading to the overthrow of Saddam Hussein’s regime and resulting in widespread chaos that allowed extremist groups, including ISIS, to gain a foothold.
U.S. troops returned to Iraq in 2014 in response to the spread of ISIS across parts of Syria and Iraq. Although coalition military operations concluded in 2021, about 2,500 American service members remain in Iraq as a stabilizing presence. Concerns regarding the potential fallout from a hasty withdrawal, similar to the situation in Afghanistan, may influence U.S. decisions. In recent months, American troops have faced missile attacks at military sites in Iraq and Syria amid escalating tensions related to the conflict in Gaza.