Obama Announces Final US Pullout In Iraq

President Barack Obama has vowed to pull the remaining 40,000 US troops out of Iraq by the end of the year - a decision which has been criticised by leading Republicans.

Mr Obama's announcement comes after Washington and Baghdad failed to agree on leaving several thousand American soldiers there for training purposes.

Iraq's prime minister Nouri al Maliki, who heads a coalition including politicians opposed to foreign troops, had backed a training presence.

But he rejected any legal immunity for US soldiers. Those terms were deemed unacceptable in Washington.

The only ones remaining will be 150-200 US military troops as part of the American embassy's security team, defence attache's office and office of security co-operation.

Defence Secretary Leon Panetta said negotiations with Baghdad on possible training will begin after the US fighting forces have left.

The US had also been interested in keeping a small force there to help the Iraqis deal with possible meddling by Iran.

The president did not declare victory in Iraq, where bombings still occur, but praised his soldiers, saying they would leave "with their heads held high, proud of their success".

He said: "After nearly nine years, America's war in Iraq will be over" and vowed all US troops "will definitely be home for the holidays".

The US has paid a heavy price with more than 4,400 members of the military killed and over 32,000 wounded in the eight-year-long conflict following the March 2003 invasion.

Mr Obama's decision was praised by Democrats, including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who called it "the right decision at the right time".

But Republicans were more sceptical, with former presidential candidate Senator John McCain saying the move went against the advice of US military commanders.

He claimed the pullout could embolden Iran and would likely worry Afghan president Hamid Karzai, who is already concerned about the US commitment to his country.

Mr McCain said: "In retrospect, I don't think the political side of the Obama administration ever had any serious intentions of keeping a residual force there because none of their actions were serious."

And Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said he feared "all we have worked for, fought for and sacrificed for is very much in jeopardy by today's announcement.

"I hope I am wrong and the president is right, but I fear this decision has set in motion events that will come back to haunt our country."

Mr Obama said that after speaking to Mr al Maliki, both agreed on how to move forward.

The US president said the two nations will now deal with each other in the normal way of sovereign countries and will keep open the idea of how the US might help train and equip Iraqi forces.

"Both countries achieved their goals," said Iraqi government spokesman Ali al Moussawi.

"Iraq wanted full sovereignty while the United States wanted its soldiers back home, and both goals are achieved."