Draft law to remove US forces from Iraq to be submitted in March: MP
Saairun
Alliance MP Alaa al-Rubaie has reiterated his party's rejection of the foreign
military presence inside Iraq, noting that the draft law on the removal of
foreign troops will be introduced to the parliament in the new legislative term
early next month.
Rubaie
said that he and other MPs have summoned Prime Minister Adil Abd al-Mahdi, who
also serves as the country's commander-in-chief of the armed forces. He added
that they have also submitted a request for a special session to voice rejection
for the presence of foreign troops inside Iraq.
He
said that 55 signatures have been gathered to introduce the draft law in the
next session, adding that most of the political blocs within the parliament
reject the US military presence inside Iraq.
The
top Pentagon official assured Iraqi leaders on Tuesday that the US will stick
to its limited military role in Iraq, a message aimed at recent talks by some
Iraqi politicians of forcing a US troop withdrawal, ABC News reported.
Pat Shanahan, the acting secretary of defense, said that in talks with Prime
Minister Abd al-Mahdi, he stressed US respect for Iraqi sovereignty, an issue
that has become a hot-button topic among Iraqis since President Donald Trump
suggested using Iraq as a base for monitoring neighboring Iran and for
potential attacks against remaining elements of the ISIS group
in Syria.