US has no plan to leave Iraq: Pentagon chief

US Defense Secretary Mark Esper says Washington has made no decision to pull its military forces out of Iraq, dismissing a signed letter from the US side announcing a troop withdrawal.

“Our policy has not changed. We are not leaving Iraq, and a draft, unsigned letter does not constitute a policy change,” Esper said in a televised briefing at the Pentagon on Tuesday.

Iraqi lawmakers unanimously approved a bill on Sunday that called for the withdrawal of all foreign troops led by the United States from the Arab country following the US assassination of Iran's top military commander, Lt. Gen. Qassem Soleimani, and the second-in-command of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.

Brigadier General William Seely, who oversees US Task Force Iraq, sent a letter to the head of Iraq’s Joint Operations Command on Monday, suggesting potential withdrawal of the forces belonging to a US-led coalition, which has been operating in Iraq since 2014 under the pretext of fighting Daesh.

Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi confirmed that Baghdad had received "signed and translated" copies from the US Army concerning the withdrawal.

Iraq PM confirms receiving ‘signed’ US pullout letter

Iraq’s Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi confirms that Baghdad has received a signed letter from the US Army concerning the withdrawal of American troops from the Arab country.

General Mark Milley, the US army chief of staff, however, said that the letter “was a draft, it was a mistake, it was unsigned, it should not have been released.”

Amid confusion over the reported US letter, Esper claimed on Tuesday he could not confirm the authenticity of the letter because he had seen it only after it was leaked, adding that it is “inconsistent with where we are right now.”

‘Iran will retaliate against US’

Esper also said Washington should expect that Iran will retaliate over the US assassination of General Soleimani.

"I think we should expect that they will retaliate in some way, shape or form," Esper said, adding that such retaliation could be either through Iran’s regional allies or "by their own hand."

Shortly after the announcement of US troop withdrawal, the US-led NATO military alliance, Germany, Italy and Canada also moved to reduce the number of their troops stationed in Iraq due to heightened tensions in the region after a US airstrike that martyred the top Iranian commander.

NATO to withdraw some troops from Iraq after Soleimani assassination

NATO announces plans for a temporary withdrawal of some of its troops and personnel from Iraq following the US’s assassination of a top anti-terror Iranian military commander.

The US airstrike was carried out on the direction of US President Donald Trump at Baghdad’s international airport early on Friday, assassinating Lt. Gen. Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis as well as eight other companions.

Both commanders were admired by Muslim nations for eliminating the US-sponsored Daesh Takfiri terrorist group in the region, particularly in Iraq and Syria.

The US assassination has drawn a wave of condemnation from officials and movements throughout the world, and triggered huge public protests across the region.

Iran has said that “harsh revenge” is awaiting the US over launching the deadly terrorist attack.

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