The United States Probably Has More Foreign Military Bases Than Any Other People, Nation, or Empire

[eridani]

-- in History

http://www.thenation.com/article/the-united-states-probably-has-more-foreign-military-bases-than-any-other-people-nation-or-empire-in-history/

To the extent that Americans think about these bases at all, we generally assume they’re essential to national security and global peace. Our leaders have claimed as much since most of them were established during World War II and the early days of the Cold War. As a result, we consider the situation normal and accept that US military installations exist in staggering numbers in other countries, on other peoples’ land. On the other hand, the idea that there would be foreign bases on US soil is unthinkable.

While there are no freestanding foreign bases permanently located in the United States, there are now around 800 US bases in foreign countries. Seventy years after World War II and 62 years after the Korean War, there are still 174 US “base sites” in Germany, 113 in Japan, and 83 in South Korea, according to the Pentagon. Hundreds more dot the planet in around 80 countries, including Aruba and Australia, Bahrain and Bulgaria, Colombia, Kenya, and Qatar, among many other places. Although few Americans realize it, the United States likely has more bases in foreign lands than any other people, nation, or empire in history.

Oddly enough, however, the mainstream media rarely report or comment on the issue. For years, during debates over the closure of the prison at the base in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, nary a pundit or politician wondered why the United States has a base on Cuban territory in the first place or questioned whether we should have one there at all. Rarely does anyone ask if we need hundreds of bases overseas or if, at an estimated annual cost of perhaps $156 billion or more, the United States can afford them. Rarely does anyone wonder how we would feel if China, Russia, or Iran built even a single base anywhere near our borders, let alone in the United States.

[Duckhunter935]

1. Lets see the list

Of all of these military bases, I smell bull****

[eridani]

2. It's a very well known fact

http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/06/us-military-bases-around-the-world-119321

Googling "800 military bases" gives you 1.7 million results.

[NuclearDem]

3. I can thoroughly call bullshit on Qatar.

The US doesn't own al-Udeid Air Base. It is and always has been a Qatari installation, but has recently had major sections of it leased to ISAF and the MNF-Iraq.

[Adrahil]

6. I think they count anywhere there is a U.S. presence.

In the U.K., for example, almost every RAF base has at least a small U.S. presence, often just to coordinate maintence and fuel for transiet airplanes. They may consider those "bases."

But I agree with the general gist of the article that we have way too may troops deployed abroad.

[left-of-center2012]

4. I suspect the world views us as militaristic bullies

Our shining city on a hill is based on a myth

[ancianita]

5. Not "probably." Fact. Used to be near 3,000. The military's running this country as a military base

needs to get more traction in the public's consciousness.

[Lee-Lee]

7. Ugh, this bullshit again. It was bad enough when the Ron Paul goons were parroting it

This is a clear case of the author either not being smart enough to comprehend what the report he cites actually says, or else it's intentional misrepresentation.

The report lists each piece of real estate leased or owned by the DOD. Those are not all "bases".

Some are small offices, 600-2000 square feet or so. That's no more a base than the recruiters office down in the strip mall is.

Many of them are small remote radio transmitting sites, a leased hangar at an airport for emergency use, a leased pier in a harbor, or similar minor sites.

The Armed Forces Recreation Areas, DOD run vacation spots for military families overseas, are also listed. Before it closed there was a Boy Scout camp in Germany for the kids of military members in Europe that was on the list- what an evil empire base that was.

On top of all that, many bases overseas are made up of many different parcels that are leased or owned differently or are not contiguous- so those all get listed on the report separately. Anyone who has spent any time stationed in Germany can look at the list and see how what is one real "base" can have 5-10-15 seperate entries for its various parcels. If the base was initially 2 small WWII German posts taken over after the war, then the land between was added, then over time they added 12 more small parcels, plus the family housing areas are in two different areas just off post, plus they leased a large parking area down by the railroad for railhead operations- that can be listed as 18 seperate entries in this list.

[eridani]

9. Let's have a list of countries that have such facilites in the US n/t

[Lee-Lee]

10. Without looking at a list, using the same standard as this list was made of

The UK, Germany, Spain, Mexico, Canada, Honduras, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Poland, and several others all train some or all of their pilots here and have leased buildings and facilities at US bases, just like many of the ones listed above are. That's just off the top of my head there are more.

The Getmans at Holloman AFB are one of the most well known examples:

http://www.holloman.af.mil/library/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=4364

Their buildings are leased there under an agreement much like many of the ones listed on that list are by the U.S. in Germany.

[eridani]

11. Yawn. Denying that the US is a military empire

The 3000 bases claim includes a lot of those arrangements. The 800 claim does not. What percentage of the world's total military expenditures do we account for?

[Lee-Lee]

12. I haven't denied anything

I'm just bringing facts and relevant background information to the discussion.

You asked for a list of what countries had bases here, evidently ignorant of the fact that they exist, and I simply provided examples for you- and you reply by putting words in my mouth in a strawman argument accusing me of denying something.

It's clear your not actually interested in a fact based discussion when presented with facts that don't fit the worldview in your little bubble, so I'm out.

[HickFromTheTick]

8. The U.S. has more foreign bases than the rest of the world combined, no? n/t