BAGHDAD — Iraq has requested that more than 5,000 U.S. military trainers stay on past the formal U.S. withdrawal date of Dec. 31, and it’s awaiting a “yes or no” from the United States, according to a statement that President Jalal Talabani issued late Monday.
The statement, which appeared in most Iraqi newspapers Tuesday, is the first by any American or Iraqi official to detail the size of the U.S. training contingent that the Iraqis have requested. It seemed to make clear that there were no further discussions likely on the thorny issue of immunity, something U.S. officials have always said was a non-negotiable condition of leaving American troops in Iraq.
“We have agreed to retain more than 5,000 American trainers, without giving them immunity,” Talabani said. “We have sent them our agreement to retain this number and are awaiting their response: yes or no.”
Last week, Iraqi officials, including Talabani and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, released a statement that said they would agree to ask for U.S. trainers but wouldn’t submit the deal to the Iraqi parliament for approval and wouldn’t request immunity.
The statement was without details, and U.S. officials, expressing uncertainty about its meaning, said that negotiations were continuing.
Talabani’s more specific statement seemed intended to clarify that, at least from an Iraqi perspective, negotiations were over, and the U.S. was expected merely either to agree to stay on or decline to do so.
