"Today, we plan to announce that the United States and Iraq have decided on a two-phase transition plan for CJTF-OIR operations in Iraq," the official said during a press briefing.
It was noted that the first phase of the plan will include a troop drawdown from certain parts within the country "as mutually determined," but that efforts to clamp down on Daesh militants would continue regardless of the transitional plan.
"This transition is not the end of the Global Coalition to defeat ISIS. The coalition will continue to support long-term efforts against ISIS [IS] in the region and around the globe," the official said.
The transition period is set to begin this September and will conclude at the end of the same month in 2025.
The United States is not yet in a position to speculate on how many US troops would remain in Iraq, as this will be determined during the two countries’ bilateral dialogue, officials added. The US hold a contingent of about 2,500 troops in Iraq.
The CJTF-OIR was established in 2014 by the US Central Command as part of a combat mission against Daesh forces, however, many observers have noted the operation was more about extending the US' footprint while blocking the strangling the country's ties to regional neighbors.
In fact, Hossein Askari, a professor emeritus at George Washington University who specializes in Middle Eastern political and economic affairs, told Sputnik that the US "will drag its feet" and make a full withdrawal impossible.
"The US will be reluctant to leave Iraq for many reasons. First, America is afraid of increased cooperation between Iraq and Iran,” Askari pointed out. "It sees its presence in Iraq as the best strategy of preventing such a future."
"Second, it uses its Iraqi presence to obstruct an unimpeded highway between Iran and Syria, which in turn is important to Israel. Third, and related to my previous reason, America’s politicians are subservient to Israeli interests and Israel is obsessed about Iran."
The professor further indicated that American officials were also unlikely to part ways as Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations were increasingly concerned by the cooperation between Iran and Iraq amid their own lacking military strengths.
“Fifth, America has significant business interest in the GCC and business interests are afraid of a domino effect of a withdrawal from the Iraq, leading to leaving the Persian Gulf altogether and in turn further damaging America’s business interests,” Askari said.
In order to ensure the departure of American troops, Iraq would need to effectively "publicly humiliate the US about not leaving in the eyes of the world."
*Daesh (also known as ISIS/ISIL/IS) is a terrorist organisation outlawed in Russia and many other states