Vance Says U.S. Would Return to Pre-Conflict Troop Levels Under Iran Peace Deal
"The drawdown contemplated, again, this is the final deal. This is assuming that the Iranians comply, that they give us verification, that they take real substantial conduct towards this peace agreement," Vance said.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) – U.S. Vice President JD Vance said on Thursday that the troop drawdown envisioned under the newly signed U.S.-Iran memorandum would return American forces in the region to their pre-conflict levels, provided Tehran fully complies with the agreement.
Responding to a question from Kurdistan24 correspondent Sangar Akrayi in Washington, D.C., on whether the planned U.S. troop withdrawal from the Gulf would affect American military deployments in Iraq and Syria, Vance did not directly address the status of troops in either country.
Instead, he said any drawdown would depend on Iran complying with the agreement and submitting to verification measures.
"The drawdown contemplated, again, this is the final deal. This is assuming that the Iranians comply, that they give us verification, that they take real substantial conduct towards this peace agreement," Vance said.
He added that the United States would reduce its military presence only to the level that existed before the recent conflict.
"What we're saying is that we will withdraw troops to the pre-conflict level. Meaning we're not gonna keep a couple of extra aircraft carrier groups over there. The Iranians don't want that. Frankly, we don't want that either," he said.
Vance's remarks came after the United States and Iran signed a 14-point Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), known as the Islamabad Memorandum, to immediately halt military hostilities and begin a 60-day negotiation process aimed at reaching a permanent peace agreement.
The interim framework was digitally finalized and entered into force after being signed by U.S. President Donald Trump at the Palace of Versailles and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in Tehran.