US Led Coalition Ends Iraq Military Mission as Baghdad Takes Lead
Parnell said the conclusion followed the timeline established in a joint US-Iraq statement issued in September 2024 and was consistent with US national interests.
He described the “orderly departure” of coalition personnel and equipment from Erbil Air Base as marking the “successful conclusion” of the mission focused on defeating ISIS in Iraq.
“This milestone reflects the success of a 12-year campaign that defeated ISIS as an organized military threat in Iraq and across the region,” Parnell said.
He said the end of the operation represents a shift from a wartime coalition structure toward an Iraqi-led security framework supported by a more conventional bilateral relationship between Baghdad and Washington.
“We expect the Iraqi Security Forces, including the Peshmerga and other security forces in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region, to lead the continuing effort to secure Iraq and keep ISIS remnants suppressed,” Parnell said.
The Department of War will continue offering Iraqi partners “targeted training and intelligence support,” he added.
“The primary responsibility for addressing Iraq’s remaining security challenges, including ISIS remnants and Iran-aligned militias that undermine Iraqi sovereignty and regional stability, now rests with the Government of Iraq,” Parnell said.
“The United States remains committed to counterterrorism” and will continue to work with Iraq and its partners to ensure ISIS “can never reconstitute from Iraqi territory,” he added.
Parnell also said Washington supports “a strong sovereign Iraq” capable of securing its borders and protecting its population, while serving as a basis for “deeper commercial, diplomatic, and security cooperation” between the two countries.
Baghdad and Washington agreed in September 2024 on a timetable to conclude the coalition’s military mission in Iraq by the end of September 2026. The arrangement also called for a transition toward bilateral security cooperation between Iraq and individual coalition members.
The US-led coalition was established in 2014 after ISIS captured extensive areas of Iraq and Syria. It provided Iraqi forces with air support, intelligence assistance and military training during operations against the group.
Iraq announced in December 2017 that its forces had retaken all territory previously held by ISIS.
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