(Bloomberg) -- The US says it has reached an agreement with Iraq on stationing American troops in the country for at least two more years, overhauling their military cooperation aimed at countering Islamic State.
Under the first phase of the deal, the US-led coalition established in 2014 will wind down its military mission in Iraq by the end of September next year, senior US officials told reporters Friday.
In the second phase, the coalition would continue counter-ISIS operations in Syria from Iraq until at least September 2026, said the officials, speaking on the condition they not be identified.
The officials declined to provide details on the future number of troops in the country, which is currently about 2,500.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani has said the American military presence is unnecessary as ISIS no longer poses a threat and has pushed for the US departure.
“The justifications are no longer there,” Al-Sudani said in an interview with Bloomberg Television earlier this month. “We have moved on from wars to stability. ISIS is not really representing a challenge.”
The US officials said the new arrangements, which could change based on the situation or future political decisions, are designed to reflect the shifting nature of the ISIS threat. They added that the coalition was successful defeating ISIS in Iraq in 2017 and Syria in 2019.
While it still has fighters and cells, ISIS no longer controls large swaths of territory as it had previously, a senior defense official said, adding that the Iraqi security forces’ capabilities have also improved significantly.
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
