Shafaq News- Washington/ Baghdad
US President Donald Trump's envoy to Syria and Iraq, Tom Barrack, welcomed the completion of the US troop withdrawal from Iraq on Wednesday, saying the departure of American forces had opened the way for Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi to bring the country's armed forces under a single state command.
Barrack noted that 23 years after the first US troops arrived in Iraq, Trump had completed the process of bringing American forces home, characterizing the move as more than a military withdrawal and saying it had brought Baghdad, Erbil and US interests into a single strategic picture.
“The Americans and Iraqis who served and sacrificed over those years made this possible; their service is honored by an Iraq that now stands on its own,” he added, calling the United States a friend rather than a garrison.
Twenty-three years after the first American boots landed in Iraq, President Trump has completed the transition of our forces home — not by walking away, but by aligning every side of the cube: Baghdad, Erbil, our regional friends, and American interests, into a single strategic… https://t.co/0nyFc5IfKj
— Ambassador Tom Barrack (@USAMBTurkiye) September 30, 2026
Earlier today, Trump said the last US troops had left Iraq, describing the withdrawal by the Sept. 30 deadline as “orderly.”
Al-Zaidi also formally declared the end of the US-led Coalition’s mission against ISIS in Iraq, with Iraqi forces assuming full responsibility for the country's security. He further noted that the end of the Coalition mission “does not mean the end of our fight against terrorism,” adding that security cooperation would continue through intelligence sharing, training, expertise and technology.