Coalition says it will continue to assist Peshmerga and Iraqi partners

The US-led coalition said on Wednesday that they will continue to advise, assist and enable its Peshmerga and Iraqi partners.
A meeting between the Ministry of Peshmerga and the coalition (Photo: Colonel Todd Burroughs/Twitter).
A meeting between the Ministry of Peshmerga and the coalition (Photo: Colonel Todd Burroughs/Twitter).

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The United States-led coalition said on Wednesday that it will continue to advise, assist and enable its Peshmerga and Iraqi partners following the end of its combat mission in Iraq. 

"As @Coalition combat role is complete, we will continue to #AdviseAssistEnable our ISF/Peshmerga partners," the official Twitter account of the Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTF-OIR) announced on Wednesday. 

"As invited guests of Iraq, we are #StrongerTogether," it added. 

Also, last week, Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby confirmed that "there will be no US forces with a combat role by the end of the year."

Read More: Pentagon: 'US forces will remain in Iraq'

Instead, US forces in Iraq will be "advising, assisting, enabling and intelligence sharing" to "support the Iraqi Security Forces in their continuing fight against ISIS."

US President Joe Biden and Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi agreed in July to end the US combat mission in Iraq by Dec. 31, 2021. 

After that date, coalition troops will transition solely to training, advising, and assisting Iraqi and Kurdish forces. Moreover, the US-led coalition will remain in Iraq under the invitation of the Iraqi government.

Kirby also said the US is not reducing the number of its troops in the country. 

"The numbers are still where it -- where they were, which is about 2,500," he said. 

Colonel Todd Burroughs, Deputy Director of the US-led coalition's Military Advisor Group North, tweeted on Tuesday that the coalition's Military Advisor Group Director Gen. Nick Ducich and he had an "exceptional engagement with the @KRG_MOPE (Ministry of Peshmerga) Inspector General today." 

"They discussed regulations, oversight, and operational readiness plans for 2022 for the Peshmerga," he tweeted. 

Read More: Coalition will continue to support and assist Peshmerga in the future: Brigadier-General

Also, Brigadier General Ducich told Kurdistan 24 on Nov. 10 that the coalition will continue to assist Peshmerga forces. He made the remarks during the distribution of military vehicles from the coalition to the Ministry of Peshmerga M4 Warehouse in Erbil Airport.

"It is our mission to advise and enable all the security forces, Iraqi and Kurdish security forces in their endeavor to defeat ISIS," he said.

He added that the coalition support for the Peshmerga has an ongoing objective, to defeat ISIS and sustain the Peshmerga's capabilities.