WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 08th January, 2020) The United States has not received any official request from the Iraqi government ordering a withdrawal of US troops from the country, US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper said during a press briefing on Tuesday.
"To the best of my knowledge, I haven't received any communication from him [Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi] or the Iraqi government about the legislation or about an order or request to withdraw US forces," Esper said.
On Sunday, the Iraqi parliament voted to bar a US military presence in Iraq following the US drone strike that killed top Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani in Baghdad on Friday.
Esper said the United States has no plans to withdraw from Iraq and remains committed in the fight against the Islamic State (banned in Russia) terrorist group.
On Monday, a letter was leaked from US Brig. Gen. William Seely III, who commands Task Force Iraq, notifying Iraq's joint operations command that the coalition was preparing to reposition forces in the coming days and weeks for an exit.
Esper and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mark Milley later denied that the United States was withdrawing forces from Iraq, saying that no such decision had been made. Milley told reporters the letter was a draft and should not have been released.
