Talks between Iraq and the United States on the future of the international anti-jihadist coalition have resumed almost two weeks after stopping. “The Iraqi Supreme Military Commission resumed its meetings on Sunday December 11 with the forces of the international coalition in Baghdad,” General Yehia Rasool, military spokesperson for Prime Minister Mohamed Chia al-Soudani, said in a statement.

Since mid-October, pro-Iranian armed groups have continued attacks against American troops deployed in Iraq and Syria with an international coalition committed against the Islamic State (IS) organization. In retaliation, Washington carried out several deadly strikes against these factions.

Seeking de-escalation, Baghdad and Washington launched talks in late January via a joint “Supreme Military Commission.” The process was almost immediately suspended when on January 28 a drone attack killed three American soldiers in the middle of the Jordanian desert, on the Syrian border.

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At this stage, the discussions aim to assess the danger posed by IS, but also "the operational environment" and "the capabilities of the Iraqi armed forces", recalls General Yehia Rasool in his press release.

“On the basis of these meetings, a timetable will be developed for a studied and progressive reduction” of troops, “until the end of the mission of the forces of the international anti-IS coalition,” the press release added. “As long as nothing disrupts the serenity of the talks, meetings will take place regularly to complete the work of the Commission as quickly as possible.”

A transition under discussion

Since mid-October, more than 165 drone strikes or rocket attacks have targeted American soldiers in Iraq and Syria, violence fueled by the war in Gaza between Israel and Palestinian Hamas. Most of these attacks were claimed by "The Islamic Resistance in Iraq", a network of pro-Iranian fighters.

The United States is deploying 2,500 troops to Iraq with the coalition, providing assistance and advice to government forces, to prevent a resurgence of ISIS.

Also read “Yankee go home”? In Iraq, the coalition against IS is in trouble

To replace the international coalition, the Iraqi authorities wish to switch to bilateral military cooperation with each member country.

The coalition and the United States suggest, however, that the process could take time. Announcing the resumption of talks, the coalition assured Thursday in a press release that their objective was “to assess progress in our common mission to defeat ISIS, and to discuss the future transition of our mission”.

With AFP

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