Iraq Says Announcement on Date for End to US-Led Coalition Mission Postponed

 Iraqi fishermen prepare to get on a boat in the Shatt al-Arab river, formed at the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, in Iraq's southern city of Basra, on August 12, 2024. (AFP)
Iraqi fishermen prepare to get on a boat in the Shatt al-Arab river, formed at the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, in Iraq's southern city of Basra, on August 12, 2024. (AFP)
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Iraq Says Announcement on Date for End to US-Led Coalition Mission Postponed

 Iraqi fishermen prepare to get on a boat in the Shatt al-Arab river, formed at the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, in Iraq's southern city of Basra, on August 12, 2024. (AFP)
Iraqi fishermen prepare to get on a boat in the Shatt al-Arab river, formed at the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, in Iraq's southern city of Basra, on August 12, 2024. (AFP)

Iraq's foreign ministry said on Thursday that an announcement on an end date for the US-led coalition's mission has been postponed due to the "latest developments." It did not identify the developments.

The US-Iraq Higher Military Commission, comprising officials from both countries, discussed details of withdrawing advisers from military sites, the foreign ministry said in a statement said.

It said the only remaining issues before reaching a deal on ending the coalition's presence in Iraq were agreement on an announcement date, logical aspects and other details.

A rare ally of both the US and Iran, Iraq hosts 2,500 US troops and has Iran-backed militias linked to its security forces. It has witnessed escalating tit-for-tat attacks since the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza erupted in October.

On Aug. 5, at least five US personnel were injured in an attack against a military base in Iraq.

Iraq wants troops from the US-led military coalition to begin withdrawing in September and to formally end the coalition's work by September 2025, Iraqi sources have said, with some US forces likely to remain in a newly negotiated advisory capacity.



Turkish, US, Syrian Top Diplomats to Weigh Details of Syria’s Release from US Sanctions

People celebrate in Damascus' Umayyad square after US President Donald Trump's decision to lift sanctions in Syria, on May 13, 2025. (AFP)
People celebrate in Damascus' Umayyad square after US President Donald Trump's decision to lift sanctions in Syria, on May 13, 2025. (AFP)
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Turkish, US, Syrian Top Diplomats to Weigh Details of Syria’s Release from US Sanctions

People celebrate in Damascus' Umayyad square after US President Donald Trump's decision to lift sanctions in Syria, on May 13, 2025. (AFP)
People celebrate in Damascus' Umayyad square after US President Donald Trump's decision to lift sanctions in Syria, on May 13, 2025. (AFP)

The foreign ministers of Türkiye, the United States and Syria will meet in southern Türkiye on Thursday to discuss details of US President Donald Trump's pledge to lift sanctions on Syria, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Wednesday.

In a surprise announcement, Trump said on Tuesday he would order the lifting of sanctions on Syria at the behest of Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

It was a major US policy shift ahead of his meeting on Wednesday with Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, the crown prince, and Erdogan, who joined virtually.

Erdogan has repeatedly urged Trump to rescind the US sanctions on Syria since the president returned to the White House in January.

Speaking to state broadcaster TRT Haber ahead of an informal NATO foreign ministers' meeting in the southern Turkish province of Antalya, Fidan said the leaders' meeting on Wednesday was of "historic importance".

He said the lifting of sanctions would enable financial flows, investment and infrastructure development in Syria, which was politically fractured and left in widespread ruins by the war.

"Now tomorrow, we, as the three foreign ministers - Mr. Rubio, Mr. Al-Shaibani, and myself - will come together after the NATO meeting in Antalya and we will work on how to carry forward the details of the agreement that the leaders set the framework for and agreed upon," Fidan said, referring to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani.

"Of course, there is a (congressional) leg to this matter in the United States, there is an administration leg, but there is a will that Mr. Trump has put forth from the start. Within the framework of this will, and the work we will do, we hope the majority of these sanctions will be lifted as soon as possible."

Removing US sanctions that cut Syria off from the global financial system will clear the way for greater engagement by humanitarian organizations working in Syria, easing foreign investment and trade as the country rebuilds.