US President Donald Trump has spoken on the decision by the Iraqi legislature to expel American troops.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Trump said that the US had spent a lot of resources to build the American bases in Iraq and would only leave if paid back what had been spent, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) reported.
"We have a very extraordinarily expensive airbase that's there. It cost billions of dollars to build. We're not leaving unless they pay us back for it," the US president state said as quoted by the BBC.
Iraq finds itself between a rock and a hard place, trapped between the US and Iran both of whom it regards as allies.
Tensions in the Middle East escalated significantly following the killing of Iran's military commander Qassem Soleimani said to be the second most important person in Iran after the supreme leader Ayahtola Khamenei.
The Islamic Republic of Iran vowed a severe response to avenge Soleimani's death.
No indication has been given of the form and shape that that severe response will take.
The US has for years maintained a military base in Iraq that it has used to launch attacks in the region.