Iraq Says Announcement of End Date for International Coalition Mission Delayed

The Iraqi Foreign Ministry announced that "due to recent developments," the announcement of the end date for the U.S.-led international coalition mission in the country has been postponed. In a statement released on Thursday evening, August 25, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry did not provide further details regarding the reason for this delay or the potential timing for announcing the end of the mission. Discussions about the details of the international coalition's mission against ISIS have been ongoing for some time in the Joint High Military Commission of the U.S. and Iraq. The Iraqi Foreign Ministry stated that the details of the coalition forces' withdrawal were discussed in this commission without specifying further details. According to this report, the only remaining issues before reaching an agreement to end the coalition's presence in Iraq are the agreement on the announcement date, logistical aspects, and other details. Meanwhile, an Iraqi Foreign Ministry official told Reuters that the announcement of the end of the coalition's presence in the country is expected to be made in early September, next month. Iraq hosts about 2,500 U.S. troops, some of whom are stationed at the Ain al-Asad airbase in Anbar province. This base was targeted about ten days ago by two Katyusha rockets. The Pentagon attributed this attack to Iran-backed proxy forces and announced that five American personnel were injured during the attack. Previously, Iraqi media had reported that the officials of this country requested that the process of withdrawing coalition forces begin in September and conclude by September of next year. However, according to Reuters and based on negotiations between the two countries, a number of American forces will remain in Iraq as advisors even after the official end of the coalition's mission.