Top Soldier Denies Imminent US Withdrawal from Iraq

Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, says a leaked letter appearing to be a message to Iraqi leaders that American troops were about to be withdrawn was a “poorly worded” draft concerning only “air movements” into and within the country. “Poorly worded, implies withdrawal,” Milley told reporters. “That’s not what’s happening.” The letter surfaced on Monday, a day after Iraq’s parliament began voting on legislation aimed at showing US troops the door as a response to the US drone attack that killed Iranian Quds Force leader Qasem Soleimani and several others, including a top Iraqi militia commander. The draft document, Milley told the reporters, “was sent over to some key Iraqi military guys in order to get things coordinated for air movements, etc. Then it went from that guy’s hands to another guy’s hands, and then it went to your hands. Now it’s a kerfuffle.” When questioned on the matter, Defense Secretary Mark Esper also denied that a withdrawal from Iraq was imminent. “There’s been no decision whatsoever to leave Iraq,” he told reporters. “I don’t know what that letter is.”