US defense secretary arrives in Baghdad
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Xinhua, December 15, 2011
U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta arrived in Baghdad Thursday to attend a ceremony that will mark the end of U.S. military mission in Iraq, an Iraqi official said.
Panetta will attend the ceremony later in Baghdad to mark the closure of the U.S. military headquarters in Iraq after the war broke out nearly nine years ago, an official from the Iraqi Foreign Ministry told Xinhua.
The official who refused to be identified also said that Panetta will meet top Iraqi officials to discuss fully withdrawal of U.S. troops from the country.
Panetta's visit is his second to the country since he took office of defense secretary, after his visit on July 10.
According to the 2008 security pact named Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) signed between the United States and Iraq, all American troops are scheduled to leave Iraq by the end of 2011.
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