Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani hosted the Running the State Coalition for a meeting on Tuesday, discussing a variety of topics including the upcoming provincial council elections, coordination between the executive and legislative authorities, and the outcomes of the recent US-Iraq security dialogue in Washington.
Reports of an increased US military presence on Iraqi soil have circulated in recent days, suggesting that Washington have boosted the number of their troops on the border between Iraq and Syria. The US-led global coalition has denied the claims.
“The participants denounced the method used by weak souls in order to spread panic into the hearts of citizens by fabricating news and videos about the entry of forces into Iraq after the citizens began to clearly feel security and services,” read a statement from the coalition following the meeting.
Hassan Salem, an MP from the Shiite al-Sadiqoun bloc, a party affiliated with the Iran-backed Asaib Ahl al-Haq militia, claimed during a press conference last week that around 2,500 US soldiers have been recently stationed in Anbar’s Ain al-Asad airbase, calling the alleged movement of troops “a true violation of Iraqi sovereignty.”
An Iraqi security delegation and a US Department of Defense delegation held the inaugural US-Iraq Joint Security Cooperation Dialogue in Washington, D.C. earlier this month, reiterating that US forces remain in Iraq in an advisory, non-combat role, and upon the invitation of the Iraqi government, to ensure the lasting defeat of ISIS.
A statement from Sudani’s office on Tuesday’s meeting said that the participants had affirmed their support for the Washington-Baghdad dialogue in a manner which “enhances national sovereignty and safeguard the nation's interests across various domains.”
Major General Matthew McFarlane, the outgoing commanding general of the Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve, on Sunday labeled the reports of increased US presence as nothing more than “rumors”, stating that the US forces are currently undertaking a routine transition of units, as they have done for the past nine years.
Running the State coalition was formed between the pro-Iran Coordination Framework, the ruling Kurdish parties, and the Sunni blocs in late September 2022, aimed at bringing an end to the political stalemate that plagued Iraq for nearly a year. The coalition nominated Sudani for the premiership, who went on to form the cabinet within a month after his designation.
