PressTV: Iraq at Loss Over US Forces Absence!

US House Speaker John Boehner has claimed that the absence of the American military forces in Iraq poses a risk to the Middle Eastern country's future. To 'liberate' Iraq, Boehner also said on NBC's 'Meet the Press' weekly news show in Washington, the US had sacrificed many soldiers and a lot of 'treasures'. His comments come as the last US military convoy left Iraq on Sunday after a nearly-nine-year-long war. However, thousands of military advisers, private contractors, and Christian missionaries will remain in the country as part of the US embassy personnel in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad. The US military invasion and occupation has left around a million Iraqis killed, according to the California-based investigative organization Project Censored. In 2003, the US invaded Iraq under the pretext of finding weapons of mass destruction, allegedly stockpiled by the former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. However, it was later revealed that not only did the Iraqi regime not possess these weapons, but also that the US and British leaders, who had defended the military action, previously knew about their non-existence. Additionally, the occupation has left some 4,500 US troops dead, and thousands more injured, reportedly costing Washington nearly a trillion dollars in military expenditures. US President Barack Obama has vowed to maintain a "robust diplomatic presence" in Iraq, leaving a substantial number of armed US soldiers to protect the diplomatic staff.