ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A joint United States and Iraqi military commission resumed meetings in Baghdad on Tuesday to commence the inaugural US-Iraq Higher Military Commission Principals Meeting to continue discussions about winding down the global coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS) and work towards an enduring bilateral security partnership, the Pentagon said in a statement. The US-Iraq HMC have held several meetings in Baghdad since January 2024 to “discuss the threat of ISIS, the operational environment, and the capabilities of the Iraqi Security Forces” after the Iraqi government expressed anger over repeated American retaliatory airstrikes on pro-Iran but state-linked Iraqi militia groups against the backdrop of the Israel-Gaza war, with hardline Iraqi Shiite politicians calling on Baghdad to expel US troops from the country. The Principals meeting, headed by the Iraqi army’s chief of staff General Abdul Amir Rashid Yarallah and US Central Command (CENTCOM) commander General Michael “Erik” Kurilla, “reflected on the historic achievements and sacrifices made in the fight to defeat ISIS; the enduring efforts to prevent ISIS resurgence; and the support to Iraqi sovereignty, stability, and unity,” said a Pentagon statement. “Both leaders reaffirmed their commitment to a process toward an orderly transition to enduring bilateral security partnerships between Iraq and the United States and other countries of the Coalition,” it added. The latest round of talks also comes days before Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani’s scheduled visit to Washington on April 15 for a meeting with US President Joe Biden. The two leaders are set to consult on a range of issues including the future role of the US-led global coalition against ISIS in Iraq. In late January, Sudani presided over the first meeting of the US-Iraq HMC. The Iraqi government has repeatedly said it wants to end the presence of foreign military forces in the country after the US, to Baghdad’s ire, conducted several retaliatory strikes targeting state-linked armed groups that are backed by Iran. The strikes were in response to hundreds of rocket and drone strikes targeting American instillations and troops in Iraq, Syria, and Jordan since October 17, angry over Washington’s support for Israel in its war against the Gaza Strip. In January, Iraqi government spokesperson Basem al-Awadi told state media that the end of the coalition’s mission in Iraq “will be achieved during the current cabinet.” Baghdad’s language has been clear that the commission’s aim is to bring an end to the presence of the coalition forces in the country, while Washington has described the step as a “transition” in the coalition’s role. The US security relationship with Iraq fully transitioned into an advising and assisting role in December 2021, triggered by Baghdad's anger over US actions that the Iraqi government deemed a violation of its sovereignty, most notably the assassination of Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani and deputy chief of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF, or Hashd al-Shaabi) Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis in Baghdad in early 2020.
