The Trump administration is reviewing its troop deployment in Iraq, and the Secretary of Defense is directing readiness.
Media outlets reported on Tuesday that the Trump administration is preparing to announce the redeployment of US forces in Iraq, according to a US official.
The Qatari Al Jazeera channel quoted the official as saying, “The redeployment of our forces is consistent with the Trump administration’s strategic priorities in Iraq and the region.”
This statement coincides with US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s announcement during a speech at Quantico Air Base in the presence of US military leaders on Tuesday that “our first mission at the Department of Defense will be to prepare for war and prepare for victory, without compromise or complacency.”
The US Secretary of Defense added, “History teaches us that those who deserve peace are those willing to wage war to defend it. Peace must be achieved through strength. Either we are prepared to win or we are not.”
“The current moment requires more troops, munitions, drones, Patriot systems, submarines, and B-21 bombers,” Hegseth noted.
Washington and Baghdad have reached an agreement on a plan for the withdrawal of US-led international coalition forces from Iraq, with reports indicating that hundreds of troops will leave by September 2025, and the remainder by the end of the following year.
The United States and Iraq aim to establish a new advisory relationship that could keep some US forces in Iraq after the withdrawal.
Last August, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry confirmed the postponement of the announcement of the end of the coalition’s mission, with the Foreign Minister indicating that the circumstances of the negotiations had changed.
There were also warnings from armed factions that attacks could resume if negotiations continue to stall.
This agreement came after more than six months of talks, initiated by the Iraqi Prime Minister in January 2023, amid escalating attacks by Iranian-backed factions on US forces.
Shafaq.com