U.S. Air Force Washington And The World Where in the World Is the U.S. Military?

David Vine, associate professor of sociology at American University, is author of Base Nation: How U.S. Military Bases Abroad Harm America and the World.

Despite recently closing hundreds of bases in Iraq and Afghanistan, the United States still maintains nearly 800 military bases in more than 70 countries and territories abroad—from giant “Little Americas” to small radar facilities. Britain, France and Russia, by contrast, have about 30 foreign bases combined.

By my calculation, maintaining bases and troops overseas cost $85 to $100 billion in fiscal year 2014; the total with bases and troops in warzones is $160 to $200 billion.


These costs have heightened debate over whether the United States needs so many bases abroad: What effect do they have around the world, and are they really making us safer?

The first step is looking at where U.S. bases are, and where they’re most prevalent. For my forthcoming book, Base Nation, I compiled a near-comprehensive list of overseas U.S. bases, including smaller cooperative security locations (“lily pads”) and suspected but unconfirmed sites (“unconfirmed lily pads”).

Mapped all together, this data, which comes from the Pentagon’s annual Base Structure Report and additional government, news or academic sources, helps to show just how far America’s reach is.

Graphic by 5W Infographics.

Italy

Hundreds of bases in Europe have closed since the 1990s, but the base and troop ( 11,500) presence in Italy has been relatively constant. Recently, the military has built new bases and expanded Africa-focused operations in Sicily.

Japan

During the Cold War, U.S. forces occupied hundreds of bases in Japan and the Pacific to surround China and the Soviet Union. Since 1995, anti-base protests have escalated in Okinawa, where there are still more than 30 bases.

Honduras

A “temporary” base has existed since 1982, allowing officials to claim there’s no U.S. base in Honduras while circumventing the Honduran constitution’s prohibition against a permanent foreign troop presence. Some suspect the base’s involvement in a 2009 military coup.

Burkina Faso

A “cooperative security location” in Ouagadougou reflects a new generation of small, clandestine “lily pad” bases appearing in countries with little previous U.S. military presence. At least 11 such bases in Africa host special operations forces, drones and surveillance flights.

Iraq

There were 505 bases at the U.S. occupation’s height, but the Iraqi parliament rejected the Pentagon’s wish to keep 58 “enduring” bases after the 2011 withdrawal. U.S. forces have occupied at least five bases since 2014 and are considering more installations.

Thailand

The Pentagon rents space at U-Tapao Naval Air Base from a contractor, allowing U.S. and Thai officials to insist there’s no U.S. “base” and no inter-governmental basing agreement. The base was a major logistics hub for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

Philippines

The Philippines evicted U.S. forces from massive bases in the 1990s. Since 2002, at least 600 U.S. troops have deployed to help Filipino forces combat insurgents from some seven lily pads; 6,000 U.S. troops have operated temporarily under the cover of military exercises.