US pledges to reduce troops in Iraq in coming months

BAGHDAD - The United States said Thursday it would reduce troops in Iraq in the coming months as friction between the two countries eased under a new US-friendly premier in Baghdad. The United States also promised support to prop up the struggling Iraqi economy as the two nations held their first strategic dialogue in more than a decade. Tensions skyrocketed following a US strike on Baghdad in January that killed Iranian general Qasem Soleimani and Iraqi commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, with lawmakers in Baghdad demanding the expulsion of the roughly 5,200 US troops in the country. President Donald Trump responded by threatening crippling sanctions and, according to US military sources,...