The German Armed Forces have resumed training for Iraqi troops as part of the Islamic State * international mission to combat the terrorist group.
“The commander of Operation Unshakable Determination has canceled the suspension of military training in northern Iraq. Therefore, the Bundeswehr at 6:00 CET (8:00 Moscow time) resumed the training program together with international partners in North Iraq’s Erbil, ”the message reads on the German Armed Forces website published on January 26.
Berlin took such a step against the backdrop of information about the resumption of mass protests against the deployment of foreign troops in the republic. In addition, protesters demand the resignation of the current government.
According to local media, the demonstrations are held in several cities: Baghdad, Nasiriya, Basra and several others. So, according to the Iraqi television channel Al-Sumaria, in Nasiria (Di-Qar province in southern Iraq), dozens of demonstrators suffered during clashes with law enforcement officers.
Inter-Arab TV channel Al Arabiya informs that unrest is also observed in the capital of the republic. It is noted that the security forces are trying to disperse the protesters using live ammunition. Activists, in turn, throw stones and Molotov cocktails at law enforcement officers.
According to the channel, on the eve of the government forces made attempts to destroy the camps of protesters in Baghdad, Basra, Najaf and other cities. However, on January 25 in the evening and the next day in the morning, the demonstrators returned to the streets again.
Al Jazeera, citing a statement by the Iraqi Human Rights Commission, reports that at least 12 protesters have died in the past two days. It is also noted that a total of at least 500 protesters have died since October.
Earlier, the American television channel CNN informed that an influential Shiite politician in Iraq and religious leader Muktad al-Sadr came forward, in particular, with a call for new protests against the US presence.
Recall, on January 24, in the capital of Iraq and other cities of the country, at the call of al-Sadr, a "march of millions" was held demanding the withdrawal of American troops. The leader of the Iraqi Shiites in his appeal to the citizens of the country demanded that the airspace of Iraq be closed for US military purposes and that their troops be prohibited from operating military bases on the territory of the republic. The New York Times newspaper estimated the number of protesters at 200-250 thousand people.
The trigger of protests against the military presence in the state of other countries, including the United States, was Washington's airstrike on January 3 in the vicinity of Baghdad Airport. The attack killed the General of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Kassem Suleimani, as well as the deputy head of the Iraqi Shiite militia Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis and about ten escort people.
The Iraqi Foreign Ministry then condemned the actions of Washington, calling them a gross violation of the conditions for the presence of American troops. The Foreign Ministry also recalled that the United States has the right to engage only in the training of Iraqi forces and to fight terrorists within the coalition.
As the Acting Prime Minister of Iraq, Adele Abdel Mahdi, stated earlier, Washington informed Baghdad of the impending attack on Iraqi territory only a few minutes before its start. According to him, the authorities of the republic did not give permission for such an operation.
To gallery page
After the US strike, on January 5, the Iraqi parliament voted in favor of a resolution calling on the government to cease any foreign military presence, in particular, to withdraw about 5,000 US troops from the republic. The parliamentarians called the reason for such a measure that the attack by the United States violated the conditions for the presence of a foreign contingent in the country.
The day after the adoption of the resolution, the representative of the Commander-in-Chief of the Iraqi Armed Forces, Abdel Kerim Half, said that Baghdad was preparing a mechanism for the withdrawal of troops of other countries from the republic. According to him, the activity of the international coalition to combat IS is planned to be limited by consultations, arms deliveries and training of military personnel, while representatives of foreign forces will have to leave the country.
A spokesman for the Iraqi government, William Warda, in turn, said last week in an interview with CNN that the country's cabinet is ready to "implement the parliament’s decision."
Washington's opposition
In the United States, after the adoption of the resolution by the Iraqi cabinet, in turn, they stated that they did not intend to withdraw the troops.
So, on January 23, shortly before the start of the protests in Iraq, this was stated by the Special Representative of the US Secretary of State for Cooperation in Syria and the Special Envoy to the International Coalition Against the Islamic State James Jeffrey.
“With regard to our statements, we said that we were not going to discuss the withdrawal of troops, because we did not agree with this,” he said, admitting, however, that “ultimately, the decision on the future US presence and coalition in the country is for Iraq” .
In addition, Jeffrey announced the suspension in the republic of the operations of the international coalition against the "Islamic State"
“The coalition operations in Iraq have for the most part been suspended, since we are focused on protecting military formations and looking for a further course with the Iraqi government after the adoption by the Council of Iraq representatives of a non-binding resolution on the withdrawal of American, and therefore coalition, troops from the country. As I have already noted, our main priority is combat security, ”said the representative of the State Department.
At the same time, he also said that the United States is "in the early stages of the search for possible options for expanding the current NATO mission in Iraq."
"The mission provides training and counseling at a strategic level (Iraqi security forces and institutions. - RT ), in addition, there is the opportunity to expand its mandate to a certain extent," said Jeffrey.
At the same time, he emphasized that the resolution adopted by the Iraqi parliament "is not binding."
“Unlike the Status of Forces Agreement of 2008 or the Security Treaty, the agreement on our presence in Iraq as part of a coalition was not concluded with the country's parliament. This intergovernmental agreement was signed in 2014 without direct or formal participation of the parliament and serves as a justification for our presence in the country. Thus, the Iraqi government should be our interlocutor in any discussion of this issue, ”the special envoy said.
- US Department of State
- © Joshua Roberts / Reuters
At the same time, the US Department of State, in response to a demand by Abdel Mahdi to send Washington representatives to develop mechanisms for the withdrawal of foreign troops from Iraq, declared its unwillingness to discuss this topic with Baghdad. This is stated in the message of the American Foreign Ministry.
Washington also does not give up pressure on the Iraqi authorities. So, Donald Trump said that if Baghdad does not pay compensation to Washington for the construction of military bases and embassies on the territory of the republic, American troops will remain in Iraq.
“The pressure will rise”
As a teacher at the HSE, an expert of the Russian Council on Foreign Affairs Grigory Lukyanov, the US military and political leadership, and, as a result, Germany, "noted a lesser degree in the opinion of Iraqi citizens," in a conversation with RT.
“Washington independently makes decisions related to the redeployment of its aircraft in Iraq and the Middle East as a whole. The protests in the republic are widespread and demonstrate the fact that now many Iraqis no longer completely consider the US presence as a condition of national and regional security, ”Lukyanov said.
He believes that in these conditions, the White House is "difficult to make a final decision" on the withdrawal of troops from Iraq.
“So far, a final political decision on the complete withdrawal of US troops from Iraq is not expected in the US Presidential Administration. But the military in the Pentagon is also forced to work out alternative plans, even if they have to make a conclusion in the foreseeable future, they will need to understand where to withdraw the troops, ”the expert explained.
According to him, even if Washington decides to withdraw its contingent before the end of the year, "it will take a lot of time to build alternative supplies and create the necessary infrastructure." The expert added that now the US military infrastructure in Iraq "is far from being the only system for ensuring American interests in the republic."
“These bases also play an important role in operations that the United States conducts in Afghanistan and Syria, adjacent to Iran. In addition, Iraq is an essential component of ensuring the interests of the United States in the Gulf region, ”the analyst said.
As for the Iraqi government, even though it sends signals of a desire to pursue a policy independent of Washington, “it really cannot affect the process of the American contingent’s withdrawal from the country,” Lukyanov said.
“The intensification of protest movements will only lead to increased security measures, nothing more,” the expert emphasized.
Lukyanov also did not rule out that the United States may redeploy part of its forces to Iraqi Kurdistan, “if the level of danger for US troops is excessively high.”
“Although anti-American sentiment now dominates most of Iraq, Iraqi Kurdistan’s leadership has refrained from harsh slogans against the United States,” Lukyanov emphasized.
A similar opinion is shared by professor at Moscow State University, an expert on the Middle East, Alexander Vavilov. According to him, the process of withdrawal of US troops from Iraq, if it starts, promises to be "quite complicated and long."
“Until now, the Iraqi government does not have a unified position on such a development of events,” the expert said.
- U.S. President Donald Trump on the background of the U.S. military, December 2019
- © Yuri Gripas / Pool via CNP / AdMedia
According to Alexander Vavilov, most Iraqi citizens oppose the American presence, as a result of the US military operation in Iraq, "the foundations of the state were destroyed and nothing was offered in return."
“Washington has not proposed any effective alternative. Currently, the Iraqi government is split on a religious basis. The United States put the Kurdish president, and Shiites into other important leadership positions, so internal contradictions now arise between them, ”the analyst said.
Moreover, according to Vavilov’s forecast, “US pressure on the Iraqi government will only increase over time.”
“The United States will put forward all sorts of requirements and conditions in exchange for the withdrawal of its troops. In addition, Washington always has an excuse to maintain its presence in the republic - the imaginary danger of a revival of the “Islamic state,” ”the expert summed up.
* “Islamic State” (IG) - the organization was recognized as terrorist by decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation of December 29, 2014.