America denies news of withdrawing its forces from Iraq and efforts to reduce escalation with Iran continue

The United States confirmed on Tuesday that it will not withdraw its forces from Iraq, denying the existence of any official message submitted in this regard to the Iraqi authorities.

This coincides with the continuation of diplomatic efforts aimed at defusing the crisis between Tehran and Washington against the background of the killing of Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani in a US raid near Baghdad airport last Friday.

US President Donald Trump, while receiving Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis at the White House, said that a withdrawal of US forces from Iraq would be "the worst that could happen to Iraq."

"At a certain time, we will leave, but this timing has not yet come," he added.

Trump stressed that if his country had to leave Iraq, it would leave Iran with a greater foothold.

He made it clear that Washington would not consider imposing sanctions on Iraq unless he treated it with respect, and that it wanted this country to carry out its security.

Great attack
The US president indicated that Washington had been tracking Qasim Soleimani for a long time, and that he was planning a major attack.

He stressed that he will abide by international law regarding avoiding targeting cultural sites in military attacks, retreating from a threat he launched against Iran a few days ago.

For his part, US Defense Secretary Mark Esber stressed that the United States will not withdraw its forces from Iraq, and that these forces will continue their mission to confront the Islamic State, including supporting and training Iraqi forces.

Esber also denied the existence of any message signed by the American side to withdraw the forces, saying that "our policy has not changed ... we will not leave Iraq," adding, "No message signed according to my knowledge," after Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi said he had received a signed copy of an American message offering Steps for the "exit" of coalition forces from Iraq.

Esber expected an Iranian "response" to the assassination of Soleimani, but he called on Tehran to "contain the escalation", stressing that Washington is still open to dialogue.

"If they want to sit at the negotiating table and discuss the United States without preconditions for a better course of action, then we can assume that this will free them from economic sanctions," he said.

He stressed that the attack on American interests that Soleimani was preparing before his assassination was a matter of "days", saying, "I think it is right to say within days, certainly," speaking of "very accurate intelligence".

On the other hand, diplomatic efforts to defuse the crisis between Washington and Tehran continued against the background of the killing of Soleimani, as French President Emmanuel Macron urged Iran to avoid any action that would increase escalation in the region.

Macron called - in a telephone conversation with his Iranian counterpart, Hassan Rouhani - for Tehran to return quickly to full compliance with its obligations in the nuclear agreement.

self-control
Turkey also renewed its call for restraint and wisdom in dealing with the current crisis.

"We will continue our call for restraint and calm," Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Qalan told a news conference in Ankara, stressing that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will intensify his meetings in this regard.

The Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, also called President Donald Trump during which they discussed developments in the region, especially developments in Iraq.

Sheikh Tamim also discussed with Trump ways of resolving contentious issues in the region and easing tension.

As for Khalid bin Salman, the Saudi Deputy Minister of Defense, he met President Trump, and discussed with him stability in the Middle East, oil prices, security and military issues.

Trump wrote about the meeting on Twitter after Prince Khaled posted photos on the networking site of the meeting that took place on Monday, where he confirmed that he had delivered the US President a message from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.