The remarks came as the U.S. military confirmed that its final troops had departed Erbil Air Base in northern Iraq. The withdrawal was carried out under an agreement reached between Washington and Baghdad in 2024, bringing the current American military mission in the country to a close.
For Trump, the departure represents more than a change in America’s military posture. It is also an opportunity to draw a line between the costly wars of the past and his stated commitment to avoiding another prolonged American military engagement.
America’s Long Chapter in Iraq Comes to a Close
The United States first sent troops into Iraq in 2003, when American forces invaded the country and toppled longtime ruler Saddam Hussein.
What followed was a prolonged period of insurgency, sectarian violence and military operations that would consume enormous American resources and cost thousands of lives.
Approximately 4,500 U.S. service members were killed during the Iraq War.
American forces eventually withdrew in 2011 under President Barack Obama. However, the U.S. military returned to Iraq in 2014 after the Islamic State terror organization, commonly known as ISIS, seized significant territory across Iraq and neighboring Syria.
That renewed deployment was intended to help Iraqi forces defeat the terrorist organization and prevent it from maintaining control over the territory it had captured.
Now, more than two decades after the initial invasion, the final departure from Erbil marks the end of the current U.S. military mission.
Trump described the withdrawal as a significant achievement for both Washington and Baghdad, while also crediting the American-led campaign against ISIS.
“This day is a victory for the United States. It’s a victory for Iraq and a decisive victory over ISIS,” he said.
The president also praised Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zadi, referring to him as a “wonderful new prime minister.”
Trump welcomed the manner in which American personnel and military equipment were removed from the country, emphasizing that the departure was orderly rather than chaotic.
“This orderly departure of coalition forces and equipment from Erbil Air Base marks the end of a very expensive excursion into hell.”
The administration’s message is clear: America can conclude its military mission without allowing a temporary deployment to become a permanent commitment.
Trump Takes Aim at the Decisions That Started the War
In addition to celebrating the withdrawal, Trump renewed his criticism of the original decision to invade Iraq.
In a separate social media post Wednesday, the president argued that the United States had been drawn into a costly conflict because of serious mistakes by the country’s political and military leadership.
He wrote that there was “very bad decision-making that got us involved in this quagmire.”
Trump has repeatedly criticized America’s prolonged military engagements, arguing that Washington must establish clear objectives and avoid becoming trapped in conflicts with no defined endpoint.
He used the conclusion of the Iraq mission to highlight what he described as a different approach under his administration.
Rather than maintaining an indefinite American presence, Trump said his administration focused on defeating ISIS and bringing the mission to an end.
“I set a clear mission, gave our Commanders the tools to finish it, and refused to let a temporary presence become a permanent one,” he wrote of the US role in Iraq.
The president’s comments reflect his broader argument that American military power should be deployed with specific goals in mind, rather than allowing U.S. forces to remain overseas for decades without a clear exit strategy.
Iran Conflict Raises Questions About Another Prolonged War
Trump also used Wednesday’s announcement to address the ongoing conflict with Iran, drawing a comparison between the current fighting and America’s lengthy involvement in Iraq.
The president said the United States had been fighting Iran for six months and had suffered 18 deaths. He argued that the conflict would not be allowed to develop into another drawn-out military commitment lasting years or decades.
Trump pointed to what he characterized as the speed of other military operations while expressing confidence that the Iran conflict would reach a conclusion soon.
“We have a war with Venezuela that was over in 148 minutes,” he continued. “We have another one where we’re six months in… and we’re going to have that war won very quickly, one way or the other.”
The comparison comes as Washington and Tehran remain engaged in negotiations involving the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s nuclear program.
The strategic waterway is a major concern for international energy markets, making the outcome of the standoff consequential well beyond the Middle East.
Trump has repeatedly maintained that the Iran conflict should not become another open-ended American military commitment. His remarks Wednesday reinforced that position, with the president presenting the conclusion of the Iraq mission as an example of bringing a long-running deployment to an end.
The administration’s challenge now is to translate that stated objective into a lasting resolution with Iran.
Iraqi Forces Face the Next Chapter
Although the departure of American combat forces marks the end of the current U.S. military mission, it does not mean Iraq is free of security threats.
The Pentagon described the withdrawal as a transition toward an Iraqi-led security effort. The United States is expected to maintain a more limited role, providing training and intelligence assistance.
Iraqi security forces will now bear greater responsibility for preventing ISIS from rebuilding its capabilities and containing the terrorist group’s remaining cells.
The country must also contend with powerful Iran-backed militias, which remain an important factor in Iraq’s security and political landscape.
The departure therefore represents a significant transition, not the end of every American connection to Iraq or the disappearance of the threats facing the country.
For Washington, the priority will be determining how to protect American interests while avoiding a return to the large-scale military presence that defined previous years.
For Baghdad, the withdrawal places greater responsibility on its own forces to maintain security and prevent extremist groups from exploiting any weaknesses.
Trump’s Wednesday remarks offered a pointed conclusion to a military chapter that began in 2003 and evolved dramatically over the years that followed.
The president’s message was unmistakable: America has spent enough time, money and lives on a conflict he believes should never have begun.
With the final U.S. troops now gone from Erbil Air Base, Trump is presenting the withdrawal as a milestone in his effort to end prolonged military commitments abroad.
Whether the reduced American presence can help deliver lasting stability in Iraq remains to be seen. But for Trump, the departure provides an opportunity to emphasize a central promise of his presidency: military missions should have clear objectives, and American troops should not remain overseas indefinitely.
The Iraq chapter, at least in its current military form, has come to an end.
