Iraq and the U.S.

We are not going to be, by the end of the year, in a combat mission.
Pres. Biden on the U.S. military in Iraq.

Pres. Biden met with Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi on Monday.
America’s combat mission in Iraq started in 2003; America will continue to train and support Iraqi troops.
The Wall Street Journal offers this reporting on the announcement by Pres. Biden: U.S. officials … say it (the end of the combat mission) won’t lead to a significant reduction in the number of American troops in the country nor fundamentally alter their mission.
Roughly 2500 U.S. troops currently remain in Iraq.
Why It Matters: Iraq continues to offer fertile ground for a proxy war between America and Iran. Only weeks after Pres. Biden took office, an American contractor was killed by a rocket attack blamed on Iranian-backed militia targeting Americans. The opposing sides have exchanged fire in both Iraq and Syria.