Iraqi Envoy in Washington To Restart Talks on US Troop Pullout

(PatriotWise.com) — The Pentagon announced on Monday that US officials met with a delegation from Iraq to discuss the drawdown of the global coalition against ISIS in Iraq.

In a press briefing last Monday, Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said the Joint Security Cooperation Dialogue reflected the commitment both nations made to strengthening the bilateral security relationship based on the work of the Higher Military Commission.

The US delegation included officials from US Central Command, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, the National Security Council, and the State Department.

The Iraqi delegation included officials from the Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces, the Counterterrorism Service, and the Kurdish Peshmerga.

Iraqi officials told Reuters that Iraq wants the US-led military coalition to begin to withdraw in September so that it is completed by September 2025, while leaving some US forces in place in an advisory capacity.

In a July 22 press briefing, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said the meetings in Washington would determine how the transition would take place but refused to discuss specifics, explaining that the Pentagon was hosting the meetings.

The US invaded Iraq in March 2003 and coalition forces withdrew in 2011, only to return three years later to combat Islamic State.

Roughly 2,500 US troops remain in Iraq as part of the 80-member coalition to defeat ISIS. Most service members are stationed at three bases: one in Baghdad, another in the Anbar province, and a third in Kurdistan.

It is unclear how many US troops would remain following the withdrawal. Iraqi officials told Reuters that they expect most American troops to leave eventually. However, US officials said the number of troops would depend on the deal negotiated between the US and Iraq.

Pentagon officials hope to keep some military personnel in Iraq as part of the negotiated bilateral agreement to help support US forces in neighboring Syria, where the US has about 900 military personnel.