Washington and Baghdad are moving forward with plans to draw down U.S. troops in Iraq as early as next year.
The United States and Iraq have reached an “agreement” on a plan to withdraw hundreds of US troops from Iraq by September 2025, with the rest by January 2027, a new report says. Reuters reported. But no firm decision has been made and the timing is fluid, two defense officials told Fox News.
The US withdrew its last troops from Afghanistan in 2021 but still has around 2,500 troops remaining in Iraq and another 900 in Syria.
The troops who remain in Iraq are primarily focused on fighting ISIS under the international coalition known as Operation Inherent Resolve. Last month, the U.S. conducted a joint raid that killed 15 ISIS fighters in western Iraq.
U.S. Army soldiers train at Ain Al-Asad Air Base in western Iraq. (Source: U.S. Army)
Asked about the Reuters report on Monday, Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder told reporters that U.S. and Iraqi officials “continue to discuss troop reductions,” as they have done since the beginning of the year, but did not comment on the accuracy of the report.
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“As part of the U.S.-Iraqi joint security cooperation dialogue, we are establishing a high-level military committee to consider transitioning to a global coalition long-term U.S.-Iraqi bilateral security cooperation relationship. So those conversations are ongoing. I don't want to get ahead of that process.”
The United States invaded Iraq in 2003 and toppled Saddam Hussein's regime, reduced its military forces from wartime levels in 2007 and withdrew completely in 2011, but invaded Iraq again in 2014 to lead the coalition fighting the Islamic State.
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Other countries, including Germany, France, Spain and Italy, have also contributed hundreds of troops to the coalition. Under the reported plan, all coalition forces would withdraw from Ain al-Assad Air Base in the western province of Anbar by September 2025, significantly reducing their presence in Baghdad.
While the U.S. military mission is focused on Islamic State, its presence serves as a strategic hub against the growing threat from Iran, and U.S. forces in Iraq have shot down rockets and drones fired toward Israel in recent months, U.S. officials said.
US troops re-invaded Iraq in 2014 to fight the Islamic State. (Photo by History/Universal Image Group via Getty Images)
Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani has said he appreciates the U.S. support, but Iraqi forces have been targeted in destabilizing attacks that are often uncoordinated with the Iraqi government. Al-Sudani finds himself caught between his alliances with both Washington and Tehran.
Defense experts argue that U.S. resources in Iraq indirectly benefit Iran because the Iraqi government maintains close ties with the Iranian regime.
“While necessary in the fight against ISIS, our continued presence risks creating more destabilization than achieving long-term peace,” Jason Beardsley, a former senior defense official, told Fox News Digital.
“Recent events demonstrate that Iraqi forces are increasingly capable of managing their own security,” the Army and Navy veteran said.
U.S. troops withdrew from Iraq in 2011 after toppling Saddam Hussein's regime, but returned three years later as part of the coalition fighting ISIS. (Getty Images)
“The current Iraqi government is heavily influenced by Iranian-backed Shiite forces, including the Popular Mobilization Front, and maintaining U.S. forces in Iraq will not be able to effectively counter Iran. In fact, our resources will indirectly benefit those sympathetic to Iranian interests, which is a flawed strategy.”
“Iran has made impressive progress in infiltrating Iraqi security forces,” said Bill Roggio, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, “but it has also ensured Iran's dominance in Iraq.”
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“They are free to carry out their orders in Iraq. This will also be detrimental when it comes to fighting the Islamic State. The Islamic State has not been defeated as much as the Trump and Biden administrations say,” he continued. “I don't know if the US intends to maintain forces in Syria. Without troops in Iraq, they will be isolated.”
But Roggio said the current situation “requires the US to either send more troops to protect against militia attacks or withdraw them.”
