Tehran (TDI): Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has welcomed the conclusion of the US-led military mission in Iraq, describing the departure of coalition forces as the beginning of what it said should become a broader American withdrawal from West Asia.
In a statement issued Thursday, the IRGC described the end of the US military presence in Iraq as an “historic victory” and attributed the development to the “will of the Iraqi people and resistance”, as well as actions by the Iraqi government.
The IRGC said the conclusion of the mission should serve as a first step toward the departure of American forces from the wider region. It called on Washington to withdraw from West Asia and said regional countries should assume responsibility for managing their own security.
The statement came a day after the US Department of Defense announced the formal conclusion of Operation Inherent Resolve in Iraq, ending the coalition’s military mission there after more than a decade.
Pentagon chief spokesman Sean Parnell said the “orderly departure” of coalition forces and equipment from Erbil Air Base marked the completion of the military mission. He said the 12-year campaign had defeated ISIS as an organized military threat in Iraq and across the region.
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The US-led coalition was established in 2014 after Islamic State, also known as ISIS or Daesh, captured large areas of Iraq and Syria. Coalition forces subsequently provided Iraqi security forces with air support, intelligence, training and other assistance during operations against the militant group.
Iraq declared victory over ISIS in December 2017 after government forces recaptured the territory previously controlled by the group. Although ISIS subsequently shifted toward an insurgency, Iraqi and international forces continued counterterrorism operations.
The conclusion of the coalition mission follows an agreement reached by Baghdad and Washington in September 2024 to end the coalition’s military role in Iraq according to a phased timetable running through September 2026.
Under the arrangement, the relationship is transitioning from the coalition’s military mission to bilateral security cooperation between Iraq and individual coalition member states. The end of the operation therefore does not necessarily mean the immediate termination of all US-Iraq security ties.
The latest development also marks another stage in the evolution of the US military presence in Iraq since the 2003 invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein. American forces withdrew from Iraq in 2011 before returning three years later as part of the international campaign against ISIS.
Iran has long opposed the presence of US forces in neighbouring Iraq and has supported calls by Iraqi political and armed groups for foreign troops to leave the country.
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The IRGC’s statement frames the latest US withdrawal within that broader regional dispute, portraying the end of Operation Inherent Resolve as part of a wider shift in the regional security balance.
For Washington and Baghdad, however, the end of the coalition’s military mission reflects an agreed transition toward a bilateral security relationship following the territorial defeat of ISIS.
The differing interpretations highlight the broader strategic significance of the withdrawal, as Iraq seeks to strengthen its independent security arrangements while balancing relations with both the United States and Iran.
