ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – The United States plans to pull more than 2,000 soldiers out of Iraq, reducing its troops in the country to 3,000 in September, the Pentagon announced on Wednesday. "In recognition of the great progress the Iraqi forces have made and in consultation and coordination with the Government of Iraq and our coalition partners, the United States has decided to reduce our troop presence in Iraq from about 5,200 to 3,000 troops during the month of September," General Kenneth McKenzie, head of US Central Command, said in remarks in Baghdad on Wednesday, reported ABC News. "This reduced footprint allows us to continue advising and assisting our Iraqi partners in rooting out the final remnants of ISIS [Islamic State] in Iraq and ensuring its enduring defeat," said McKenzie. "This decision is due to our confidence in the Iraqi Security Forces' increased ability to operate independently." The US-led Global Coalition against ISIS currently has 7,500 troops in Iraq, according to AFP. The US has been under pressure to exit Iraq since January, when it killed Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani in a drone strike in Baghdad. Iraqi Shiite parliamentarians passed a non-binding law, demanding the removal of foreign troops and tensions between US and pro-Iranian groups have increased. The US embassy in Baghdad and bases housing American soldiers have repeatedly come under rocket attack. Iraq’s new prime minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, known for his friendly relations with the West and the US, has postponed the mandatory withdrawal of foreign troops. The Coalition began scaling back its footprint, handing over several military bases to Iraqi forces since April. US Col. Myles B Caggins III, outgoing spokesperson for the Coalition, said in his farewell press conference in Erbil on Sunday that the Coalition and allied ground forces liberated 7.7 million people and 110,000 square kilometers from ISIS rule in both Syria and Iraq. Some 35,000 airstrikes have been conducted since 2014, he added.
