In December 2019, Iraq and the United States began discussing the partial withdrawal of American combat troops from Iraq. In January 2020, during massive protests[1] and following an escalation of tensions between the United States and Iran, the Iraqi Council of Representatives passed a non-binding measure to "expel all foreign troops from their country," including American and Iranian troops. Following the vote, U.S. president Donald Trump initially refused to withdraw from Iraq, but began withdrawing forces in March.[2]
In March 2020, the U.S.-led coalition began transferring control over a number of military installations back to Iraqi security forces, citing developments in the multi-year mission against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). By 4 April 2020, four bases had been transferred. The base transfers and withdrawal were accelerated due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Iraq and the threat of Iranian proxy elements.
In February 2021, NATO announced it will expand its mission to train Iraqi forces in their fight against ISIL,[3] partially reversing the U.S.-led troop withdrawals. In April 2021, U.S. Central Command stated that there were no plans for a total withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq, citing continued threats posed by the ISIL insurgency and Iran-backed militias.[4]
Background[]
Iraq denounced the killing of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani by the United States as a violation of its sovereignty.
The United States completed its withdrawal of troops in December 2011, concluding the Iraq War.[5] In June 2014, the United States formed Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTF-OIR) and re-intervened at the request of the Iraqi government due to the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).[6] Iran also intervened in Iraq in June 2014. On 9 December 2017, Iraq declared victory against ISIL, concluding the 2014–2017 Iraqi Civil War and commencing the latest Iraqi insurgency.[7]
In May 2019, four merchant ships were attacked by limpet mines in the Gulf of Oman.[8] Tensions rose between the United States and Iran, after the United States blamed Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps for the incident.[8] In June 2019, a nearly-identical incident occurred involving two merchant ships.[8] In December 2019, the United States began discussing with Iraq about plans to withdraw from certain bases.[9] That same month, the K-1 Air Base was attacked, resulting in one American fatality and six injuries.[8] The United States claimed that Kata'ib Hezbollah, an Iranian proxy group, was responsible for the attack.[8] The United States responded by conducting airstrikes in Iraq and Syria against Kata'ib Hezbollah locations.[8]
On 31 December 2019 through 1 January 2020, the United States Embassy in Baghdad was attacked in response to the airstrikes.[8] On 3 January 2020, the United States conducted an airstrike that killed Iranian major general Qasem Soleimani and Kata'ib Hezbollah commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.[8] Iraq protested that the airstrike violated their sovereignty.[10] On 5 January 2020, the Iraqi Council of Representatives voted to obligate Iraq's government "to work towards ending the presence of all foreign troops on Iraqi soil."[11] U.S. president Donald Trump responded to the resolution by threatening to impose sanctions against Iraq.[12]
Withdrawal[]
January 2020: Non-binding Iraqi vote for troop withdrawal[]
If they do ask us to leave, if we don't do it in a very friendly basis, we will charge them sanctions like they've never seen before ever. It'll make Iranian sanctions look somewhat tame.
On 5 January 2020, the Iraqi Parliament voted to obligate Iraq's government "to work towards ending the presence of all foreign troops on Iraqi soil."[11] It was unclear if the resolution was binding and no timetable for withdrawal was set.[6] Qais Khazali, leader of Iranian proxy group Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, stated "If [US troops] don't leave, then they will be considered occupation forces."[6] Trump threatened to impose sanctions on Iraq in response to the vote.[12] According to a letter sent by a senior U.S. commander to Iraqi officials on 6 January 2020, "the United States may be preparing to withdraw its troops",[13] but after a while Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Mark Milley, announced that it was a draft sent by "honest mistake."[14]
On 8 January 2020, Iran launched "Operation Martyr Soleimani", conducting missile strikes against U.S. troops stationed in Iraq.[13] 110 U.S. military personnel suffered from traumatic brain injuries.[15] The United States responded by insisting that its troops would stay in Iraq.[13] Speaking on the withdrawal, Trump stated "At some point, we want to get out. But this isn’t the right point."[13] Two days later, Abdul-Mahdi reiterated that all foreign troops must withdraw from Iraq, including Iran.[16] On 24 January 2020, Iraqi demonstrators marched to demand that the U.S. withdraw its troops.[17] Due to security concerns, some NATO countries including Canada, Germany, Croatia and Slovakia said they were concluding their training missions and pulling troops out of Iraq, at least temporarily.[18]
March – May 2020: Base transfers and COVID-19 pandemic[]
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2nd Battalion, 7th Marines packing up gear to withdraw from Al-Taqaddum Air Base.
On 11 March and 14 March 2020, Camp Taji was attacked, supposedly by Kata'ib Hezbollah, killing three Coalition personnel.[19] The United States responded to the first attack on Camp Taji by targeting five Kata'ib Hezbollah weapon storage facilities with air strikes.[20] On 19 March 2020, the al-Qaim base near the Iraq–Syria border was transferred from the coalition to Iraqi security forces.[21] Iraqi major general Tahsin Khafaji stated "This is the first step of US troops withdrawing from Iraq."[21] On 20 March 2020, CJTF-OIR confirmed that certain troops would be withdrawing from Iraq due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[22] On that same day, United States Central Command ordered a 14-day "stop movement" preventing any U.S. troops from entering or leaving Iraq and Afghanistan because of the pandemic.[23]
The U.S. Army left the Qayyarah Airfield West on 26 March.[24] The third base, K-1 Air Base, to be transferred by the United States was near Kirkuk.[25] On 4 April 2020, the coalition transferred the Al-Taqaddum Air Base, making it the fourth base to be transferred to Iraqi forces.[25] ISIL has planned to take advantage of the vacuum in the Syrian Desert caused by the coronavirus-expedited withdrawal of U.S. troops.[26] In an April 2020 news release, CJTF-OIR reiterated that the base transfers were pre-planned and "are not related to recent attacks against Iraqi bases hosting Coalition troops, or the ongoing COVID-19 situation in Iraq."[25] However, an inspector general report released in May 2020 admitted that though the base transfers were planned ahead of time, they were accelerated due to the threat of Iranian proxies and the pandemic.[27]
June 2020 – January 2021: American–Iraqi security dialogue[]
By June 2020, the Iraqi government had yet to act on the January parliamentary resolution to call for the departure of foreign troops, and the Iraqi military was reportedly reluctant to have U.S. forces leave altogether.[28] On 1 June Spain announced its intentions to withdraw from its primary base in Iraq by the end of July.[29] The United States and Iraq scheduled new negotiations regarding military, political, and economic cooperation for June.[30] Security dialogue between the two countries last occurred in 2018.[28] On 9 June 2020, prior to the start of the dialogue, a rocket attack against U.S. troops in Baghdad International Airport concluded with no injuries.[31] The Iraqi-U.S. negotiations began on June 11 and are to be conducted virtually and expected to continue for months.[28] The negotiations began amid continued tensions with Iran and a resurgence of ISIL attacks. According to The New York Times, the ISIL insurgency began to intensify by mid-2020, partially due to Iraqi security forces diverting resources to enforce curfews and lock downs due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[28]
On 23 August, U.S. troops withdrew from Taji Base and handed it over to Iraqi security forces.[32] On 28 August, a U.S. official said that the U.S. was expected to reduce troops by a third from 5,200 to 3,500.[33] On September 9, the U.S. military said it will reduce its troops in Iraq from 5,200 to 3,000.[2]
February 2021 – April 2021: Expanded NATO training[]
By February 2021, the U.S. had reduced its presence to 2,500 troops in Iraq.[34]
On 15 February, two people were killed and an additional 13 were injured–including an American service member–following a rocket attack on the U.S.-led coalition's base in Erbil by a suspected Iranian-backed militia.[35]
On 18 February, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg announced that the alliance will expand its mission to train Iraqi security forces (ISF) at the request of the Iraqi government. Stoltenberg said NATO will gradually increase personnel in the country from 500 to 4,000 and expand its presence to more facilities beyond the Baghdad area. The Pentagon reportedly welcomed NATO's decision, but it remained unclear if the U.S. will reverse its withdrawal and commit personnel under the NATO initiative.[3][34]
On 23 March, the Iraqi government formally requested a resumption of bilateral security dialogue with the U.S., expected to take place in April 2021. The dialogue would be the third session of Iraqi-U.S. strategic talks since June 2020, and the first under the Biden administration. The talks are expected to center around the withdrawal of U.S. troops while the U.S. is expected to reiterate that coalition forces remain in the country "at the invitation of the Iraqi government" with the task of training Iraqi forces and combating the ISIL insurgency.[36]
After the third round of "Strategic Dialogue" concluded on 7 April, the U.S.-led coalition confirmed it will continue training and advising the Iraqi military while withdrawing combat forces from the country, citing "increasing capacity of the ISF", with a timetable forthcoming. Iraqi security officials agreed that a limited coalition presence was necessary to keep ISIL underground, despite continued pressure from Iran-backed militias to ouster all coalition forces.[37] On 22 April, USCENTOM commander General Frank McKenzie welcomed NATO's planned expanded role in the country and denied the prospect of an approaching total withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq, saying "we're going to stay in Iraq" to "finish the ISIS fight" at the behest of the Iraqi government. McKenzie also cited the continued threat Iran-backed militias posed to the coalition and affirmed his belief that ousting U.S. forces and their allies from the region was a foreign policy goal of Iran.[4]
See also[]
- 2021 withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan
References[]
- ↑ "Hundreds of thousands protest US troop presence in Iraq". https://www.cnn.com/2020/01/24/middleeast/iraq-protests-us-troops-intl/index.html.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "United States formally announces troop reduction in Iraq". Al Jazeera. September 9, 2020. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/09/united-states-formally-announces-troop-reduction-iraq-200909123333305.html.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 https://www.defense.gov/Explore/News/Article/Article/2507564/nato-defense-leaders-agree-to-increase-iraqi-mission-defers-decision-on-afghani/
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "‘We’re going to stay in Iraq,’ says top US Middle East commander". Military Times. 22 April 2021. https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2021/04/22/were-going-to-say-in-iraq-says-top-us-middle-east-commander/. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
- ↑ "US troops complete their withdrawal from Iraq". http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/us-troops-complete-their-withdrawal-from-iraq/story-e6frf7jx-1226225154019.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 "Iraq has voted to expel US troops. Whether they'll actually be kicked out is far from clear". January 6, 2020. https://www.cnn.com/2020/01/06/middleeast/iraq-us-troops-explainer-intl/index.html.
- ↑ Nehal Mostafa (December 9, 2017). "Iraq announces end of war against IS, liberation of borders with Syria: Abadi". https://www.iraqinews.com/iraq-war/iraq-announces-end-war-liberation-borders-syria-abadi.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 8.7 "The US-Iran conflict: A timeline of how we got here". January 11, 2020. https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2020/01/world/us-iran-conflict-timeline-trnd/.
- ↑ Chad Garland (March 18, 2020). "US reduces footprint in Iraq with transfer of base used to fight ISIS". https://www.stripes.com/news/us-reduces-footprint-in-iraq-with-transfer-of-base-used-to-fight-isis-1.622858.
- ↑ "A Shocked Iraq Reconsiders Its Relationship With the U.S.". January 3, 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/03/world/middleeast/us-iraq.html.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 "Iraqi Parliament votes for plan to end US troop presence in Iraq after Soleimani killing". January 5, 2020. https://www.cnn.com/2020/01/05/world/soleimani-us-iran-attack/index.html.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Joanna Tan (January 5, 2020). "Trump threatens to slap sanctions on Iraq 'like they've never seen before'". https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/06/trump-threatens-to-slap-sanctions-on-iraq-like-theyve-never-seen-before.html.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 "Trump administration insists U.S. troops will remain in Iraq". January 7, 2020. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/iraq-says-it-has-been-informed-by-the-us-military-that-troops-will-be-withdrawn/2020/01/07/0e164b46-30d3-11ea-971b-43bec3ff9860_story.html.
- ↑ "Top general says letter suggesting US would withdraw troops from Iraq was a 'mistake'". January 6, 2020. https://edition.cnn.com/2020/01/06/politics/us-troops-iraq/index.html.
- ↑ "Number of US troops wounded in Iran attack now at 110: Pentagon". February 22, 2020. https://news.abs-cbn.com/overseas/02/22/20/number-of-us-troops-wounded-in-iran-attack-now-at-110-pentagon.
- ↑ "Iraq Wants Both the U.S. and Iran's Forces Out of the Country". January 9, 2020. https://www.newsweek.com/iraq-wants-us-iran-withdraw-1481391.
- ↑ Louisa Loveluck (January 24, 2020). "Iraqi demonstrators demand withdrawal of U.S. troops". https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/iraqi-demonstrators-demand-withdrawal-of-us-troops/2020/01/24/b71de708-3df3-11ea-afe2-090eb37b60b1_story.html.
- ↑ Ron DePasquale (January 7, 2020). "Some NATO Troops Begin Leaving Iraq". https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/07/world/middleeast/nato-troops-iraq.html.
- ↑ "Iraq base attack: Coalition and Iraqi troops hurt as Taji targeted again". March 14, 2020. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-51890492.
- ↑ "US strikes Kataib Hezbollah militia across Iraq in retaliation for Taji rocket attack". March 13, 2020. https://www.thedefensepost.com/2020/03/13/iraq-us-strikes-kataib-hezbollah-retaliation-taji/.
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Lawk Ghafuri (March 19, 2020). "Iraq military: US handover of al-Qaim base is 'first step of withdrawal'". https://www.rudaw.net/english/middleeast/iraq/19032020.
- ↑ Rebecca Kheel (March 20, 2020). "US-led coalition in Iraq drawing down over coronavirus concerns". https://thehill.com/policy/defense/488618-us-led-coalition-in-iraq-drawing-down-over-coronavirus-concerns.
- ↑ "Coronavirus Halts Military Travel In and Out of Iraq and Afghanistan". March 20, 2020. https://www.defenseone.com/threats/2020/03/coronavirus-halts-military-travel-and-out-iraq-and-afghanistan/163973/.
- ↑ "US transfers Q-West airfield to Iraqi forces citing progress in fight against ISIS". Military Times. March 29, 2020. https://www.militarytimes.com/flashpoints/2020/03/26/us-transfers-q-west-airfield-to-iraqi-forces-citing-progress-in-fight-against-isis/.
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 25.2 Shawn Snow (April 4, 2020). "US hands over another air base to Iraqi forces". https://www.militarytimes.com/flashpoints/2020/04/04/us-hands-over-another-air-base-to-iraqi-forces/.
- ↑ Pesha Magid (April 6, 2020). "Islamic State Aims for Comeback Amid Virus-Expedited U.S. Withdrawal". https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/04/06/iraq-islamic-state-comeback-coronavirus-us-withdrawal/.
- ↑ Shawn Snow (May 14, 2020). "Tensions with Iran and its proxies led to accelerated transfer of bases housing coalition troops to Iraqi forces". https://www.militarytimes.com/flashpoints/2020/05/14/tensions-with-iran-and-its-proxies-led-to-accelerated-transfer-of-bases-housing-coalition-troops-to-iraqi-forces/.
- ↑ 28.0 28.1 28.2 28.3 Rubin, Alissa J.; Jakes, Lara; Schmitt, Eric (June 10, 2020). "ISIS Attacks Surge in Iraq Amid Debate on U.S. Troop Levels". https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/10/world/middleeast/iraq-isis-strategic-dialogue-troops.html.
- ↑ Miguel González (June 1, 2020). "Spain to withdraw troops from main Iraqi base this summer". https://english.elpais.com/spanish_news/2020-06-01/spain-to-withdraw-troops-from-main-iraqi-base-this-summer.html.
- ↑ Simona Foltyn (May 29, 2020). "How Tensions Between the U.S. and Iran Ended Up Strengthening ISIS". https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/05/29/how-tensions-between-the-u-s-and-iran-ended-up-strengthening-isis/.
- ↑ "Rocket hits Baghdad airport in another attack on US forces". https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/06/rocket-hits-baghdad-airport-attack-forces-200609074949755.html.
- ↑ "U.S.-led troops withdraw from Iraq's Taji base". 23 August 2020. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iraq-security-usa-military/us-led-troops-withdraw-from-iraqs-taji-base-idUSKBN25J088.
- ↑ "U.S. expected to reduce troops in Iraq by a third to about 3,500: official". 28 August 2020. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-iraq-military/us-expected-to-reduce-troops-in-iraq-by-a-third-to-about-3500-official-idUSKBN25O2DI.
- ↑ 34.0 34.1 "NATO announces expanded mission in Iraq on the heels of deadly rocket attack". CNBC. 18 February 2021. https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/18/nato-expands-mission-in-iraq-on-the-heels-of-deadly-rocket-attack.html. Retrieved 13 March 2021.
- ↑ Gaouette, Nicole; Starr, Barbara; Liptak, Kevin (17 February 2021). "US expresses outrage over Erbil rocket attack as investigation gets underway". CNN. https://edition.cnn.com/2021/02/16/politics/us-erbil-attack-outrage/index.html.
- ↑ "US, Iraq to hold talks over American troop presence". ABC News. 23 March 2021. https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/iraq-requests-round-talks-us-troop-presence-76632601. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
- ↑ "U.S. and Iraq conclude talks on troop presence". Washington Post. 7 April 2021. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/us-iraq-talk-troops/2021/04/07/e9a15998-97cb-11eb-8f0a-3384cf4fb399_story.html.
The original article can be found at Withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq (2020–2021) and the edit history here.