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St Martin’s island: How many military bases does US have around the world?

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St Martin’s island: How many military bases does US have around the world?

5 min read Last Updated : Aug 12 2024 | 8:27 PM IST


A letter, allegedly issued by former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and in the news over the weekend, reportedly attributed her ouster after 15 years in power to her refusal to cede control of St Martin’s island in the Bay of Bengal to the United States (US).


“I could have remained in power if I had left St Martin’s and the Bay of Bengal to America,” the letter reportedly said.


While Hasina’s son, Sajeeb Wazed, said on Sunday that his mother had not made any such statements before or after fleeing from Dhaka on August 5, Hasina had made a similar accusation on record in the past. In June of 2023, Hasina had said that there would be no problem for her to hold on to power if she leased out Saint Martin’s island. However, she had added, “I have no intention to go to power by selling the country’s assets.” Hasina also did not take the name of any country at the time.

Meanwhile, US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller had denied Hasina’s allegations, describing them as “not accurate”. Miller had added that “no discussions” on taking over the island had taken place with the then Hasina-led government.


However, while the US might indeed not be interested in a military base on St Martin’s island, it does maintain a significant military presence across the globe.


How many military bases does the US have across the world?


An October 2023 article, published by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs’ Blue Marble publication, reported that the US maintains troops on every continent.


The report said that as of September 2022, there are 171,736 active-duty US military troops stationed across 178 countries.

Most of these overseas US military personnel were deployed in just three countries, with 53,973 in Japan, 35,781 in Germany, and 25,372 in South Korea.


In fact, these three countries also housed the most US military bases, with 120 in Japan, 119 in Germany, and 73 in South Korea.


Overall, the report said that there were about 750 US military bases across at least 80 countries. However, according to one Al Jazeera report, the number of US overseas military bases could be higher because not all the related data is published by the Pentagon.


Many of the US’ overseas military bases were built after World War II, with Washington taking the position of peacekeeper in and around Japan and Germany. This explains why these two countries have the most US military bases. Subsequently, the Korean War and Cold War gave the US further reason for global military expansion in a bid to contain communism.


In the following decades, the US also expanded its military presence to the Middle East and the surrounding area. Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Kuwait each have at least 10 US bases.

The US’ global military presence is underwritten by the US taxpayer and Washington’s mammoth defence budget. In 2022, the US spent $877 billion on its military — the most of any country, and more than China, Russia, India, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom (UK), Germany, France, South Korea, and Japan combined.


During 2023, as tensions ramped up in the Middle East and the South China Sea, the US further bolstered its military presence in these regions.


Since Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel, the US has deployed additional forces to the Middle East.

Before the start of the war in Gaza, as of June 2023, there were more than 30,000 American troops stationed in the Middle East alone.


Meanwhile, amid growing tensions in the South China Sea and increasing threats of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, the US and the Philippines struck a deal in February 2023, allowing US forces access to four more military camps in the Philippines. After the deal, the US now has access to a total of nine military camps in the country.


Before its withdrawal from Afghanistan, the US also had a significant military presence and bases in that country. During the War on Terror, the US also had clandestime military bases in Pakistan.


However, at present, the US military base of most interest to India is the Naval Support Facility Diego Garcia, which is located in the Indian Ocean.


An island of the British Indian Ocean Territory and a disputed overseas territory of the UK that is also claimed by Mauritius, Diego Garcia is an atoll just south of the equator in the central Indian Ocean.


The US base there is the sole reason that the UK continues to cling onto the 58 small Indian Ocean isles that make up the Chagos Archipelago, of which, Diego Garcia is the largest. The nation closest to the Chagos is the Maldives.


For decades now, the UK has made Diego Garcia available to the US military on very favourable terms. The Pentagon has to pay no rent for it and there are few restrictions or oversight.


Diego Garcia allows the US to project hard military power from the Persian Gulf to the South China Sea. Alongside Guam, Diego Garcia is considered the anchor of US military strategy in the Indo-Pacific region.


Along with the Andersen Air Force Base in Guam, Diego Garcia is one of the two crucial US bomber bases in the Indo-Pacific region.


Recently, however, the UK began negotiations for returning the Chagos Archipelago to Mauritian control.

First Published: Aug 12 2024 | 8:08 PM IST

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