Syria-to-iraq move called brief
Baghdad official says U.S. troops will leave within four weeks
BAGHDAD — U.S. troops withdrawing from northeastern Syria to Iraq are “transiting” and will leave the country within four weeks, Iraq’s defense minister said Wednesday.
Najah al-shammari made the remarks to The Associated Press following a meeting in Baghdad with visiting U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper, who arrived as Iraqi leaders chafed over reports the U.S. may want to increase the number of troops based in Iraq, at least temporarily.
Iraq’s military said Tuesday that American troops leaving northeastern Syria don’t have permission to stay in Iraq in a statement that appeared to contradict Esper, who has said that all U.S. troops leaving Syria would continue to conduct operations against the Islamic State group from Iraq to prevent its resurgence in the region.
He later added that the troops would be there temporarily until they are able to go home, but no time period has been set.
Esper said earlier Wednesday that the U.S. has no plans to leave those troops in Iraq “interminably.”
Al-shammari said Esper traveled to Iraq based on an invitation from the Iraqis. In Wednesday’s talks, he said the two sides agreed that the American troops crossing from Syria are “transiting” through Iraq and will then head to either Kuwait, Qatar or the United States “within a time frame not exceeding four weeks.”
Esper’s visit to Baghdad came a day after Russia and Turkey reached an agreement that would deploy their forces along nearly the entire northeastern border of Syria to fill the void left after President Donald Trump’s withdrawal of U.S. forces from the area.
It was unclear Wednesday what that means for U.S. forces.
Esper said the troops going into
Iraq would help defend Iraq against a resurgence of IS militants and would monitor and perform a counter-is mission.
The U.S. has more than 5,000 forces in Iraq under an agreement between the two countries.