US President Barack Obama said Friday that all American troops will leave Iraq by the end of the year, ending a long war
US President Barack Obama announced Friday that all American occupation troops will leave Iraq by the end of the year, ending a long war.
The decision came after Iraq failed to agree to legal immunity for a small residual force that Washington had hoped to keep in the country to train the army and counter the influence of neighboring Iran, officials said.
After nearly nine years, the deaths of more than 4,400 US troops, tens of thousands of Iraqis and the expenditure of hundreds of billions of dollars, Obama said the last American soldier would leave with his head held high.
"Today I can report that, as promised, the rest of our troops in Iraq will come home by the end of the year. After nearly nine years, America's war in Iraq will be over," Obama said at the White House. "Our troops in Iraq will definitely be home for the holidays," said Obama.
Obama announced the pullout after holding a video conference with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, which US officials said included a moving tribute by the Iraqi leader to American occupation troops who died in his country.
Obama said that despite the failure, US defense officials would still seek ways to help train Iraqi forces, as they do for many other nations. And hours later, US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta confirmed such a strategy.
The US withdrawal provokes a number of questions about the war-ravaged country's future, including:
-- Are the Iraqi military and security forces up to the job of safeguarding security gains made over recent years?
-- How will Iran seek to expand its influence in Iraqi politics?
-- Is Iraq's fledgling political system robust enough to survive?
-- Will disputes between Kurdistan and Baghdad drive a deeper wedgebetween the autonomous region and the central government?
Obama administration officials declined to say whether the war had been worthwhile.
Maliki, who Obama has invited to the White House in December, said in a brief statement that the two leaders were on the same page on the withdrawal.
