US armed forces to pull out of Iraq by end of year

The statement follows the meeting that was held at the White House between the US President and Prime Minister (PM) Mustafa al-Kadhimi.

According to reports there are 2,500 US armed forces in Iraq at the moment, which are aiding the local troops to fight against the remaining Islamic State (IS) group.

It has been said that keeping the number of troops same may be an attempt at helping the Iraqi PM.

The US interference became a major problem since last year, when the Iranian general Qasem Solemani and the leader of an Iran-backed Shia Muslim forces were killed in a US drone attack in Baghdad.

Many political parties that associated themselves to Iran demanded the US-led global alliance against IS to back out, despite the looming threat of the Sunni jihadist group.

The Shia groups have accused the US of striking Iraqi military bases that host allied forces as a move to pressure them to back out.

For the US president, this comes as the end of another war that started under former President George W Bush. The US president declares this year the US militia will leave Afghanistan.