Germany has opted for a partial withdrawal of its troops in Iraq and for displacing them to Jordan and Kuwait, before the growing insecurity in the region after the US attack last Friday against Iranian commander Quasem Suleimani. It is, for the moment, a temporary measure, according to German public television citing parliamentary sources. Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and the head of Defense, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, informed a parliamentary committee of the decision on Monday night, according to the same sources.
The reduction of the troops and their transfer affects a contingent formed by about thirty soldiers deployed in Baghdad and Taji dedicated to training and training. The rest of the troops, about 90 soldiers stationed in the north of the country, near Erbil, will not be displaced at the moment.
In the letter, the head of Foreign Affairs and Defense explain that they have conversations with the Iraqi Government about the continuity of the operation. “Of course, we will respect any sovereign decision of the Iraqi government,” they say in the letter. “We are willing to continue our support within the framework of international coordination if Iraq wishes to do so and if the situation permits,” says a fragment of the text published by the German press.
Maas warned of the effects of a possible hasty withdrawal and expressed concern to the ZDF chain. “If international forces leave Iraq very quickly, the fight against ISIS will be over, ISIS could grow again and lead to great instability. Nobody wants that.”
Germany supports the international mission against ISIS with Tornado reconnaissance and refueling aircraft, as well as with military instructors in Iraq; It also participates in the international mission with 415 soldiers, 120 stationed in Iraq, of which 90 were in the Kurdish north, where they instructed local security forces until the mission had to be interrupted by tensions in the region.
According to the German weekly Der SpiegelOn Monday night, 32 soldiers had left the military camp north of Baghdad aboard an Air Force plane and landed shortly thereafter in Jordan. In addition, three other soldiers stationed at the coalition headquarters in Baghdad left the country with other US soldiers, as reported by the EFE agency.
NATO withdraws part of its staff
The Atlantic Alliance is also rethinking its presence in Iraq after the murder of Soleimani. Its secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, announced on Monday the suspension of the training mission of the Iraqi security forces on the ground. And on Tuesday he has informed that he will withdraw part of the military personnel he has in the country, about 500 troops in total.
“We take all necessary precautions to protect our people. This includes the temporary relocation of personnel in different places both inside and outside Iraq,” a coalition official said in a statement without specifying the new fate of his forces. .
The measure coincides with a request from the Iraqi Prime Minister to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. During a telephone conversation held on Tuesday, Adel Abdelmahdi insisted on his desire for international troops to leave the country.
Stoltenberg accused Iran on Monday of disturbing the peace in the area after an emergency meeting with the 29 ambassadors of the Atlantic Alliance, and declined to assess the murder of Soleimani. “It was a decision of the United States, not the coalition or NATO, but all the allies are worried about Iran’s destabilizing activities in the region,” he said.
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