SULAIMANI (ESTA) — The United States will keep the current 2,500 troops in Iraq for the foreseeable future, the top U.S. commander for the Middle East said.
Marine Gen. Frank McKenzie said in an interview with AP on Thursday that the U.S. would still provide air support and other military aid for Iraq’s fight against Islamic State (ISIS).
McKenzie, commander of the U.S. Central Command, said he expected increasing attacks on U.S. and Iraqi personnel by Iranian-backed militias determined to get Americans out.
“They actually want all U.S. forces to leave, and all U.S. forces are not going to leave,” he told AP.
“That may provoke a response as we get later into the end of the month,” he said.
On Thursday, Iraq’s national security advisor Qasem al-Araji said the U.S.-led Coalition forces had ended their combat mission on schedule ahead of the end of the year.
The Coalition’s combat troops were to withdraw, he added.
In July, U.S. President Joe Biden and Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi sealed an agreement to formally end the combat mission in Iraq by the end of 2021.
The United States has kept around 2,500 troops in Iraq since 2020.
“We’ve drawn down from bases we didn’t need, we’ve made it harder to get at us. But the Iraqis still want us to be there. They still want the presence, they still want the engagement,” AP quoted McKenzie as saying.
“So as long as they want it, and we can mutually agree that’s the case – we’re going to be there,” he added.
He also said he believed ISIS militants would continue to be a threat in Iraq and that the group will “keep recreating itself, perhaps under a different name.”
The U.S. commander added that the key would be to ensure that ISIS is not able to coalesce with other elements around the globe and become increasingly strong and dangerous.
Regarding an attempt to kill Iraqi prime minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, McKenzie said the attack was a “pretty significant event”.
“I think that’s a signpost of the desperation that they’re under right now,” he noted.
