Officials say US forces on track to complete Iraq pullout by Sept. 30

[HAIDER]

BAGHDAD (AP) — The U.S. military is on track to pull all of its forces out of Iraq by the end of September, officials said Wednesday, marking the end of a presence that started with the 2003 invasion against Saddam Hussein.

Washington and Baghdad agreed in 2024 to wind down the much smaller U.S.-led operations against the Islamic State group.

U.S. troops pulled out of bases in most areas of Iraq last year but maintained a presence in the semi-autonomous northern Kurdish region. Bases there have regularly come under attack since the U.S. and Israel launched the war on Iran on Feb. 28.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi met with Adm. Brad Cooper, who leads the U.S. Central Command, on Wednesday. Al-Zaidi said in a statement afterward that he had affirmed Sept. 30 as the “fixed and final date for ending the military mission of the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS in Iraq and completing the departure of its forces.”

A U.S. official confirmed that the U.S. expects to complete its pullout by Sept. 30, but declined to say how many troops remain in Iraq or where they would be redeployed.

“The United States, Iraq and coalition partners have achieved tremendous success in defeating ISIS and now the Iraqi security forces, including the Peshmerga and other Iraqi Kurdistan Region security forces, will lead the fight against terrorists in Iraq,” the official said.

Two Iraqi Kurdish officials said a drawdown of U.S. troops and military equipment from Erbil began about three weeks ago.

 

[retaxis]

So the US paid trillions of dollars for IRaq war and now Iraq sells nearly all their oil to Asians.

Iraq's top crude oil and petroleum buyers are primarily located in Asia, led by China, India, and South Korea. [1, 2]

Top Destinations for Iraq's Crude Oil
Based on recent trade data, the primary country destinations and values for Iraq's crude petroleum exports include:

• • China: ~$37.0 billion
  • India: ~$28.1 billion
  • South Korea: ~$7.67 billion
  • United States: ~$5.81 billion
  • Greece: ~$4.60 billion [1]

 

[HAIDER]

So the US paid trillions of dollars for IRaq war and now Iraq sells nearly all their oil to Asians.

Iraq's top crude oil and petroleum buyers are primarily located in Asia, led by China, India, and South Korea. [1, 2]

Top Destinations for Iraq's Crude Oil
Based on recent trade data, the primary country destinations and values for Iraq's crude petroleum exports include:

• • China: ~$37.0 billion
  • India: ~$28.1 billion
  • South Korea: ~$7.67 billion
  • United States: ~$5.81 billion
  • Greece: ~$4.60 billion [1]

Oil refineries and well owned and operated by Halliburton USA...guess who is making money.

 

[Watandar]

Oil refineries and well owned and operated by Halliburton USA...guess who is making money.

The money from Iraqi oil sales is also deposited in New York banks and the US decides how the Iraqi government gets to spend the money. It is one reason Iraqi Kurdistan gets lots of cash while the Iraqi Shia south is left decrepit.

 

[Pakistani Dragon]

So the US paid trillions of dollars for IRaq war and now Iraq sells nearly all their oil to Asians.

Iraq's top crude oil and petroleum buyers are primarily located in Asia, led by China, India, and South Korea. [1, 2]

Top Destinations for Iraq's Crude Oil
Based on recent trade data, the primary country destinations and values for Iraq's crude petroleum exports include:

• • China: ~$37.0 billion
  • India: ~$28.1 billion
  • South Korea: ~$7.67 billion
  • United States: ~$5.81 billion
  • Greece: ~$4.60 billion [1]

Iraq's oil revenues have effectively been under US financial control since 2003.

The revenues are held in an account belonging to the Central Bank of Iraq at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, giving Washington considerable leverage over Iraq's access to its oil dollars.

23/01/2026: How the U.S. controls Iraq's oil revenues: Reuters

And the US has demonstrated that it can use this financial leverage when it wants to pressure Baghdad.

The way things are going, Iran could potentially end up facing a similar system.

 

[retaxis]

The money from Iraqi oil sales is also deposited in New York banks and the US decides how the Iraqi government gets to spend the money. It is one reason Iraqi Kurdistan gets lots of cash while the Iraqi Shia south is left decrepit.

These Epstein class guys got their claws pretty deep in there. No wonder the country never develops

 

[Pakistani Dragon]

These Epstein class guys got their claws pretty deep in there. No wonder the country never develops

Yes, that's correct. Never pick a fight with a grizzly if you don't want to get clawed to death.

 

[Agnostic Muslim]

Iraq's oil revenues have effectively been under US financial control since 2003.

The revenues are held in an account belonging to the Central Bank of Iraq at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, giving Washington considerable leverage over Iraq's access to its oil dollars.

23/01/2026: How the U.S. controls Iraq's oil revenues: Reuters

And the US has demonstrated that it can use this financial leverage when it wants to pressure Baghdad.

The way things are going, Iran could potentially end up facing a similar system.

Yep, Troop withdrawals mean little while the US/Israeli Government maintains control over Iraq’s oil revenues.

 

[Watandar]

Yep, Troop withdrawals mean little while the US/Israeli Government maintains control over Iraq’s oil revenues.

US forces also mostly withdrew from Iraq around 2012-2013 but then rushed back in 18 months later when the ISIS demons invaded western Iraq from Syria and the Iraqi army threw away its weapons and fled. This headline basically means nothing in practical terms.