Date: Wed, 28 May 2014 20:04:31 +0200
MAP: The U.S. military currently has troops in these African countries
. By Adam Taylor <http://www.washingtonpost.com/pb/adam-taylor>
*
. May 28, 2014 at 8:05 pm
President Obama's announcement that United States has deployed 80 troops to
Chad came as a surprise to many. But as my colleague
<https://twitter.com/CraigMWhitlock/status/469196686582370304> Craig
Whitlock points out, the United States already has boots on the ground in a
surprising number of African countries.
This map shows what sub-Saharan nations currently have a U.S. military
presence engaged in actual military operations.
It should be noted that in most of these countries, there is a pretty small
number of troops. But it is a clear sign of the U.S. Africa Command's
increasingly broad position on the continent in what could be described as a
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-expands-secret-int
elligence-operations-in-africa/2012/06/13/gJQAHyvAbV_story.html> growing
shadow war against al-Qaeda affiliates and other militant groups. It also
shows an increasingly blurred line between U.S. military operations and the
CIA in Africa.
More details of the troops deployed are below.
Burkina Faso
The United States has a base in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, since 2007. The
base acts
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-expands-secret-int
elligence-operations-in-africa/2012/06/13/gJQAHyvAbV_story.html> as a hub of
a U.S spying network in the region, with spy planes departing form the base
to fly over Mali, Mauritania and the Sahara, where they search for fighters
from al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.
Congo
The United States has troops in Congo assisting the nation in the search for
Joseph Kony's Lord's Resistance Army.
Central African Republic
In April 2013,
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/hunt-for-joseph-kony-elusive-african-wa
rlord-is-halted/2013/04/03/833cc0dc-9c81-11e2-9219-51eb8387e8f1_story.html>
the United States had around 40 troops in Central African Republic assisting
the search for the LRA.
Chad
On Wednesday, Washington
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-deploys-80-militar
y-personnel-to-chad/2014/05/21/edd7d21a-e11d-11e3-810f-764fe508b82d_story.ht
ml> announced that it would be sending 80 troops to Chad to help with the
search for Nigerian schoolgirls kidnapped by militant Islamist group Boko
Haram.
Djibouti
The U.S. military has a
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/remote-us-base-at-cor
e-of-secret-operations/2012/10/25/a26a9392-197a-11e2-bd10-5ff056538b7c_story
.html> major base in Djibouti, Camp Lemonnier. There are around 4,000 troops
there, including lots of aircraft and drones.
Ethiopia
The United States has had a military drone base at Arba Minch since 2011.
The base is
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-drone-base-in-ethi
opia-is-operational/2011/10/27/gIQAznKwMM_story.html> used to fly Reaper
drones over East Africa.
Kenya
Camp Simba, near the border with Somalia, had around
<http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/news/Pentagon-to-boost-its-Kenya-Djibouti-m
ilitary-bases/-/2558/2079606/-/st6lq5z/-/index.html> 60 military personnel
stationed as of November 2013.
Mali
In April 2013,
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/pentagon-deploys-smal
l-number-of-troops-to-war-torn-mali/2013/04/30/2b02c928-b1a0-11e2-bc39-65b0a
67147df_story.html> 10 U.S. troops were deployed to war-torn Mali to provide
"liaison support" to French and African troops. The Pentagon insisted they
would not be engaging in combat.
Niger
The U.S. Air Force set up a
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/drone-base-in-niger-g
ives-us-a-strategic-foothold-in-west-africa/2013/03/21/700ee8d0-9170-11e2-9c
4d-798c073d7ec8_story.html> drone base in Niamey, Niger, in 2013. The White
House says it has around 100 military personnel in the country on
<http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/02/22/letter-president-conc
erning-niger> an "intelligence collection" mission.
Nigeria
At the beginning of May, a small team of U.S. troops and civilian advisers
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-prepares-to-dispat
ch-small-team-to-nigeria-to-assist-in-search-for-kidnapped-girls/2014/05/07/
bd9f8094-d604-11e3-95d3-3bcd77cd4e11_story.html> was deployed to Nigeria to
join the search for the abducted schoolgirls.
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/pentagon-no-military-
ops-planned-yet-for-nigeria/2014/05/07/2e0bcca6-d629-11e3-8f7d-7786660fff7c_
story.html> According to the Associated Press, these troops joined around 70
military personnel in Nigeria, with 50 regularly assigned to the U.S.
Embassy, and 20 Marines there for training.
Somalia
In early 2014, the United States deployed fewer than
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-has-deployed-milit
ary-advisers-to-somalia-officials-say/2014/01/10/b19429f2-7a20-11e3-af7f-13b
f0e9965f6_story.html> two dozen regular troops to Somalia for training and
advising purposes.
South Sudan
In December 2013,
<http://bigstory.ap.org/article/obama-deploys-small-military-group-south-sud
an> the United States deployed 45 military personnel to South Sudan to
protect U.S. citizens and property in the country.
Uganda
The United States has a base in Entebbe that it uses to fly PC-12
surveillance aircraft in search of Kony's LRA. The total number of U.S.
troops
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/2014/03/23/aa468ca6-b
2d0-11e3-8020-b2d790b3c9e1_story.html> in Uganda is said to be around 300,
and they are officially in the country to "provide information, advice and
assistance" to an African Union force searching for Kony.
Adam Taylor and Laris Karklis/The Washington Post
Adam Taylor and Laris Karklis/The Washington Post
(image/jpeg attachment: image001.jpg)