Trump Announces U.S. Forces To Withdraw From Iraq After 23 Years

More than two decades after the United States invaded Iraq, American forces are set to complete their withdrawal from the country by September 30, Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi announced Tuesday during an Oval Office meeting with President Donald Trump.

“On the 30th of September, the U.S. forces will be out of Iraq while these [U.S.] companies will be inside Iraq,” al-Zaidi said through an interpreter. “The social relations is about the economy, not about military relations.”

The announcement marks the end of a military presence that began with the U.S.-led invasion in 2003 and evolved through years of insurgency, sectarian violence, counterterrorism operations, and the fight against ISIS. More than 4,400 U.S. service members died in Iraq during the war and its aftermath.

Trump welcomed the new relationship, arguing that Iraq no longer requires a significant U.S. military presence and that the future between the two countries should instead focus on economic cooperation.

Trump says U.S. troops are no longer needed in Iraq.

U.S. troop levels in Iraq peaked at about 170,000 during the Iraq War. Most forces left in 2011, though several thousand returned in 2014 to help fight ISIS.

Roughly 2,000 troops remain today. pic.twitter.com/yDa0uMYpwf

— Kassy Akiva (@KassyAkiva) July 14, 2026

“We don’t think we need the military there anymore,” Trump said. “We’re there to help them. We’re there to protect them if need be. But we don’t think that’s going to be necessary.”

The withdrawal follows a 2024 agreement that began winding down the United States-led military mission in Iraq. While most troops departed beginning in September 2025, U.S. forces remained in advisory roles and continued supporting operations against ISIS. Many of those personnel were stationed in Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region.

U.S. troop levels in Iraq peaked at roughly 170,000 in 2007. Most U.S. forces left in 2011 before approximately 5,000 troops returned in 2014 to combat ISIS. Prior to the latest drawdown, about 2,500 U.S. troops remained in the country.

Trump suggested the changing security environment in the Middle East also made a continued U.S. military presence less necessary, arguing that Iran — long viewed as a major destabilizing force in the region — has been significantly weakened by recent U.S. and Israeli military operations.

Instead, Trump emphasized the opportunities Iraq’s oil sector presents for U.S. businesses and investments. 

“Iraq has tremendous potential because of their oil and because of other things, but because of their oil, and we’re going to be doing a lot of deals,” he added. “We’re going to create a lot of jobs for both countries, and we’re going to be taking out a lot of oil. A lot of oil is coming out.”

According to The Associated Press, Iraq is expected to sign an agreement with Chevron, TI Capital, and Qatar’s UCC to construct a major oil pipeline connecting Basra in southern Iraq to Haditha in western Iraq and onward to Turkey’s Ceyhan port and Syria’s Baniyas port. The pipeline is projected to transport roughly 2 million barrels of oil per day.

Al-Zaidi, a 41-year-old banker and businessman from Baghdad, took office earlier this year after receiving backing from Trump, who favored him over former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a longtime Iraqi political figure accused by critics of maintaining close ties to Iran.

The visit marked al-Zaidi’s first trip to the United States. Opening the meeting, he conveyed greetings from “the oldest civilization in the world” and stressed that Iraqi security forces would be capable of defending the country after the U.S. withdrawal.

Trump repeatedly praised the Iraqi leader throughout the meeting and their “tremendous chemistry.”

“Mark my words, I knew what I was doing,” Trump said. “This man is going to be a great leader in the Middle East, beyond Iraq. His influence is going to spread all throughout the Middle East.”

In his first speech before parliament, al-Zaidi pledged to disarm militia groups operating outside Iraqi state control. 

On June 15, he and U.S. Special Envoy for Iraq Tom Barrack issued a joint statement outlining plans for the “complete disarmament and disbandment of all armed groups and formations operating outside the authority and control of the Iraqi state,” later giving them until the end of September to comply.

The issue remains politically sensitive in Iraq, where some powerful factions maintain close ties to Tehran. Earlier this month, the body of Iran’s late supreme leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, was brought into Iraq during a multi-day funeral procession — a reminder of Iran’s continuing influence among segments of the Iraqi population.

At one point during the meeting, Trump referenced the 2020 U.S. strike in Baghdad that killed Iranian General Qassem Soleimani. Al-Zaidi declined to revisit the controversy.

“At that time, I wasn’t involved in politics,” he said. “Let’s talk about the future.”