President Barack Obama met with Iraqi President Nuri al-Maliki today to promise the leader that the United States would continue to stand by Iraq as U.S. troops complete their withdrawal from the country, according to Reuters.
The president told al-Maliki in front of reporters:
"As we end this war and as Iraq faces its future, the Iraqi people must know that you will not stand alone. You have a strong and enduring partner in the United States of America."
It's estimated almost one million United States servicemembers have served in Iraq since that war began in 2003. Now Department of Defense officials say just a few thousand troops remain, with virtually all U.S. military slated to leave by year's end. NBC News recently visited once thriving military bases in Iraq, to discover most now resemble ghost towns:
