Obama announces end of Iraq war
President Obama announced on Friday that the United States will withdraw nearly all troops from Iraq by the end of the year, effective promotion of long and polarizing war in Iraq to an end.

"After almost 9 years, the American war in Iraq is finished," said Mr. Obama.

According to him, the last American troops leave the country before January 1, "with his head held high, proud of his success, and knowing that the American people are united in their support of our troops."

"The transition is moving forward in Afghanistan and our troops finally come home," he added, saying the White House briefing room, that U.S. troops "will definitely be home for the holidays."

The war in Iraq has led to the death of more than 4,400 U.S. troops and come to more than $ 700 billion. Asked at a briefing following the remarks of Mr. Obama, if it was worth it, Antony Blinken, National Security Advisor, Vice President Joe Biden said: "History will have to judge."

U.S. and Iraqi officials have spent months debating whether credit will be December 31 deadline for withdrawing troops, established in 2008, amid fears that a full withdrawal of U.S. troops would put the country under threat. Many U.S. officials wanted to keep a few thousand military instructors in the country after the end of the year, but as the Associated Press reported Sunday, "Iraqi leaders flatly refused to give U.S. troops immunity from prosecution in Iraqi courts, and the Americans refused to go without him."

America has already withdrawn nearly 100,000 troops from Iraq as early as within the talk-down, almost 40 thousand "non-combat" troops remain. Mr. Obama said Friday that "the Iraqis have taken full responsibility for the security of their country" and said that relations between the United States and Iraq in the future will be one of equals.

"It will be normal relations between sovereign states and an equal partnership based on mutual interest and mutual respect," he said.

Mr. Obama planned to discuss the announcement earlier in the day with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki by secure videoconference. He said al-Maliki, "said a determination of the Iraqi people to forge their own future," and that the two leaders "in full agreement about how to move forward."

Mr. Obama said that he invited al-Maliki at the White House in December and pledged that the United States and Iraq will go to a "strong and enduring partnership."

"As I told Prime Minister al-Maliki, we will continue discussions on how we could help train and equip Iraqi forces, again, as we offer training and assistance to countries around the world," he said. "In the end, there will be some difficult days for Iraq and the U.S. will continue to have an interest in Iraq that is stable, secure and independent.

Mr. Obama promised to end the war in Iraq as a presidential candidate. He spoke passionately against the war in 2002, but later said that the U.S. had "absolute obligation" to remain in the country as long as it took to succeed.

Mr. Obama said the U.S. would "move forward from a position of strength," and that the troops of the administration "will have time to think about all that we have experienced in this war."

"I will join the American people and I pay tribute to more than 1 million Americans who served in Iraq," he said. "We will honor our many wounded soldiers and about 4,500 American patriots and their Iraqi and coalition partners who sacrificed their lives in these efforts."

Mr. Obama cast the end of the war in Iraq in the broader context of smaller U.S. military presence around the world. "The course of the war goes," he said, pointing to the beginning of the withdrawal of troops in Afghanistan.

"When I took office, about 180 000 troops were deployed in both wars. And by the end of this year this figure will be reduced twice," he said. "And make no mistake, they will continue to go down."