Despite Russia’s Concern, France Insists on Staying in Iraq

A Russian newspaper reported on the agreement to withdraw U.S. combat forces from Iraq by December 31, 2021.

Izvestia newspaper spoke about French President Emmanuel Macron's decision to keep his military forces in Iraq, Baghdad's views on this and their position on Iraqi-American cooperation to combat terrorism in the country and fight "ISIS."

 

Situation Developments

The newspaper pointed to Macron's announcement on August 29, 2021, in an interview with the "TF1" TV channel, that France "will maintain its military presence in Iraq, even if the United States leaves the country."

The newspaper continued, quoting Macron: "We will remain there as long as there are terrorists, and as long as the Iraqis ask us to do so," stressing that "if the American authorities decide to leave Iraq completely, France will not rely on this decision and will remain on the side of the Iraqis."

On July 26, 2021, the U.S. State Department indicated in a joint statement with the Iraqi side that Washington intends to end the country's participation in military operations by the end of 2021.

On the same day, U.S. President Joe Biden said that more U.S.-Iraqi cooperation should include education and training of Baghdad forces, stressing that the U.S. side does not intend to participate in hostilities in Iraq.

Izvestia described the Russian position, saying: "Moscow is concerned about the further development of the situation in Iraq after the withdrawal of U.S. forces from there."

The State Duma Defense Committee also told the newspaper: "There is a danger that the influence of terrorist groups that the United States has been fighting over the past seven years will increase again throughout the republic."

It  added, "Washington is supposed to reduce its military presence in Iraq to the lowest level by the end of 2021, when it will be reduced to training local security forces only."

According to experts interviewed by Izvestia, this decision is also related to the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan, against the clashes between terrorists and the government army that have already resumed in Iraq.

 

Inability and Failure

The newspaper stated that "Russia is concerned that extremist terrorist groups will be active in the region, after the withdrawal of the U.S. army from Iraq, as stated by Andrey Krasov, deputy head of the Defense Committee of the State Duma."

It added: The United States is leaving Iraq and Afghanistan. In fact, this is an admission of the mission's inability and failure to bring "American-style peace" to these lands, as Krasov mentioned in an interview with Izvestia.

Krasov said: "Washington destroyed the local government systems during the years of its presence in Iraq and Afghanistan."

He continued: "The new regimes, which were created with the help of Washington, are not able to fight the threat of terrorism on their own, and it is likely that the groups that raised the banner of terrorism will once again be strengthened in the region and will involve unemployed youth in their ranks. Russia, of course, is concerned about the possibility of the strengthening of extremist groups in this area after the departure of the American army."

The newspaper also reported that "the fact that the United States will complete its combat mission in Iraq became known on July 26, 2021, after Biden met with Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi in Washington."

A joint U.S.-Iraqi statement clarified that cooperation between Baghdad and Washington in the security field will boil down to the fact that American specialists will guide and train the Iraqi army, as well as sharing intelligence.

The United States also intends to continue to support local security forces and Kurdish Peshmerga elements. The Foreign Ministry did not provide a quick response to the request of Izvestia newspaper about the scheduled date for the start of the withdrawal and the number of U.S. troops that should leave the country.

"The agreement between Iraq and the United States clarifies the end of the combat mission in Iraq by the end of this year, not the withdrawal of the American army in the literal sense of the word," the head of the Iraqi Monitoring Council and former adviser to the Prime Minister, Farhad Alaeddin, explained to Izvestia.

At the same time, Iraq needs logistical and intelligence support to fight the remnants of ISIS, and it is necessary to maintain this support at one level or another, at least until Iraq can independently protect its borders and internal security.

Moscow has already responded to this agreement, as the Russian President's press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, said: The situation in Iraq "deserves more attention" and the Russian Federation will monitor everything itself.

At the same time, the representative of the Kremlin did not assess the situation with a plan, saying: "It is too early to somehow anticipate events, but, of course, I would not like to add another region to the regions that will face destabilization in general."