THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
An Online Journal of Political Commentary & Analysis
Volume X, Issue # 77, March 20, 2008
Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr., Editor
Government Committed to & Acting in Accord with Conservative Principles
Ensures a Nation's Strength, Progress, & Prosperity
OUR NATION, OUR MILITARY, OUR MISSION
By Alan Caruba
WORLDWIDE DEPLOYMENT OF U.S. MILITARY FORCES: FOWARD-DEPLOYMENT OF U.S. MILITARY PERSONNEL IN
FAR-FLUNG PLACES PREPARED TO DETER & DEFEAT AMERICA'S ENEMIES & TO DEFEND THE SOVEREIGNTY, INDEPENDENCE,
& FREEDOM OF THE U.S.A. & ITS ALLIES -- ENDEAVORING TO MAINTAIN PEACE THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE WORLD --
FOLLOWING THE ANCIENT ROMAN MAXIM: "SI VIS PACEM, PARA BELLUM" ("IF YOU WANT PEACE, PREPARE FOR
WAR")
FULL STORY:
Americans know that we have troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, but I suspect they have little idea that nearly a half-million
of our soldiers, marines, airmen, sailors, and members of the Coast Guard are in far-flung places prepared to deter and
defeat the enemies of, not just our sovereign nation-state, but of the freedom we enjoy and want to extend worldwide.
“About 490,000 U.S. military service personnel are forward-deployed around the world.”
The quote above is from Major General Richard Sherlock, Director of Operational Planning for the Joint Chiefs of Staff. It
should be noted that they are all volunteers.
In a nation-state with just over three hundred million population, their bravery, their dedication, their sacrifice strikes me as
extraordinary, but I also think we probably need a lot more such people as the 21st century portends an “asymmetrical war”
against fanatical jihadists bent on dragging everyone back to the 7th century.
A February, 2008, article in The American Legion Magazine by Alan W. Dowd, drawing on available data from
public records, including the Pentagon’s “Active-Duty Military Personnel Strengths by Regional Area and By Country”
report, reveals just how committed the United States of America is to the mission of maintaining peace throughout of the
entire world.
“To display every U.S. deployment on earth,” wrote Dowd, “would be to highlight virtually every country from Albania to
Zimbabwe.” The Congressional Research Service reports that the U.S. has a military presence in 144 nations.
Here’s a thumbnail sketch of where Americans are “forward deployed” in a dangerous world.
After more than 50 years since the stalemate that ended the Korean conflict, 1950-1953, we have 27,114 U.S. forces in South
Korea. My former affiliation, the 2nd Infantry Division, and several Air Force tactical squadrons are based there. Across the
border is the criminal, Communist nation of North Korea. U.S. forces have fallen by 9,000 in the past three years.
Long since the end of World War II, having protected Europe against the possibility of an invasion by the Soviet Union, we
have 10,152 personnel in England. A raft of Army, Navy and Air Force personnel are stationed there. We have 58,894
personnel in Germany. At the height of the Cold War, we had nearly 300,000 U.S. troops deployed there. Reunited with the
fall of the Berlin Wall, today there is no East Germany controlled by the Soviet Union. We have military assets in Belgium,
the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, and Portugal. We maintain a minor presence in Bosnia-Herzegovina and in Kosovo/Serbia.
Coming soon, we will station “force protection” troops in the Czech Republic and Poland. We even have a small force in
Greenland.
Keep in mind that we are in these nations and others at their invitation and as the result of mutual defense treaties.
Because 70 percent of the U.S. military’s Iraq-bound air cargo passes through Turkey, we have 1,668 Air Force personnel
based at the Incirlik Air Base. We have been there since the 1950s. We’re building new Air Force facilities in Romania and
some 2,500 in Bulgaria. Both are former Soviet satellite nations. A small force for naval support is based in Greece. There’s
also a deep-water port and airfield at Souda Bay in Crete.
In addition to approximately 168,000 U.S. fighting forces based in Iraq, there are 26 other nations represented there for a total
of 11,830 additional personnel. Approximately 3,830 Americans have given their lives to depose a homicidal dictator and
bring about a constitutional democratic government in that nation. Nearby in Kuwait, which was liberated in 1991, after an
Iraqi invasion, we have 16,500. Kuwait is the logistical hub and staging area for U.S. operations in Iraq.
There are approximately 24,800 U.S. troops conducting counter-insurgency and stability operations in Afghanistan. In
addition, there are some 20,000 non-U.S. forces deployed there as well. About 700 Coalition personnel have been killed,
including 445 Americans.
Elsewhere in the Middle East, there are small forces deployed in Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, and even
Saudi Arabia.
Turning toward East Asia, there are 50,000 forces stationed there. Japan hosts a carrier battle group, the 111 Marine
Expeditionary Force, the 5th Air Force, and elements of the Army’s I Corps. Approximately half are based in Okinawa. There
are a small number of personnel in the Philippines, primarily in a training mission to help that nation deal with Islamic terrorist
groups. Australia is host to just over 700 personnel and, in Guam, the U.S. maintains critical Navy and Air Force facilities and
military units. There are plans to deploy F-22 fighter-bombers, aircraft carriers, and 20,000 more troops there. Major units of
the U.S. military are based in Hawaii to the tune of 35,874 personnel.
The volatile continent of Africa and its strategically critical Horn has just over 2,000 personnel conducting humanitarian,
training, and military operations. We have a small number of special operations units in the Trans-Sahara region, mostly
concerned with counterterrorism. The U.S. presence is likely to increase, given the creation of an Africa Command.
In North America, we have major units based in Alaska, a forward-deployed position in the event of trouble in Asia. A
handful is based in Canada as part of NATO and mutual defense commitments. As might be expected, there are 876,378
military personnel based in the United States. Some 63.8 percent of America’s active-duty personnel are based here. There
are, for example, 3,000 National Guard deployed along the U.S.-Mexico border to assist our border patrol units.
Under the Southern Command, we maintain units that deploy in training exercises with troops from 19 nations in South
America. Small units are maintained in Honduras and Columbia. There are just over 900 in Cuba at the U.S. Naval Station in
Guantanamo Bay, where we also have just over 300 detainees from the various fronts of the global war on terrorism. There’s
even an Army garrison at Fort Buchanan in beautiful Puerto Rico.
All this sounds like a lot of military power, and it is, but we need more and we need to upgrade our Air Force that is flying
aircraft that are decades old and need replacement. We have been keeping at least two full carrier groups in the Persian Gulf
for a very long time, along with troop strength in Iraq and Afghanistan. We are likely to do so as long as Iran and other
factors continue to threaten the stability of that region.
The ancient Romans knew something about maintaining troops in a far-flung empire. “Si vis pacem, para bellum.” ("If you
want peace, prepare for war.")
LINKS TO RELATED TOPICS:
International Politics & World Disorder:
War & Peace in the Real World
Page Two
Page One
Military Defense & National Security
U.S. National Security Strategy
Alan Caruba is a veteran business and science writer, a Public Relations Counselor, and Founder of the National Anxiety Center, a
clearinghouse for information about media-driven scare campaigns. Caruba writes a weekly commentary, "Warning Signs," posted
on the Internet website of the National Anxiety Center, which is located at
www.anxietycenter.com.
Caruba has a daily blog at http://factsnotfantasy.blogspot.com.
Caruba’s new book, Right Answers: Separating Fact from Fantasy, has been published by Merril Press.
© Alan Caruba 2008
Published with Permission of Alan Caruba
ACaruba@AOL.Com
Return to Top of Page
Go to the WEBSITE INDEX
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA,
Public Issues & Political Controversies
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
Most Recent Articles
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA,
Volume X, 2007
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA,
Subject Matter Highlights
Return to POLITICAL EDUCATION Homepage
CONTACT & ACCESS INFORMATION
This is not a commercial website. The sole purpose of the website is to share with interested persons information regarding civics,
civic and social education, political science, government, politics, law, constitutional law and history, public policy, and political
philosophy and history, as well as current and recent political developments, public issues, and political controversies.
POLITICAL EDUCATION, CONSERVATIVE ANALYSIS
POLITICS, SOCIETY, & THE SOVEREIGN STATE
Website of Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr.
Government, Politics, Public Policy, Legal Issues, Constitutional Law, Government & the Economy, Cultural Values, Foreign Affairs,
International Relations, Military Defense & National Security, Geopolitics, Terrorism & Homeland Security, American National Interests,
Political Systems & Processes, Political Institutions, Political Ideologies, & Political Philosophy
INDEX FOR THE ENTIRE WEBSITE
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
An Online Journal of Political Commentary & Analysis
Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr., Editor
Conservative & Free-Market Analysis of Government, Politics & Public Policy, Covering Political, Legal, Constitutional, Economic,
Cultural, Military, International, Strategic, & Geopolitical Issues
Conservative Government Ensures a Nation's Strength, Progress, & Prosperity