United States military deployments

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The military of the United States is deployed in most countries around the world, with approximately 160,000 of its active-duty personnel stationed outside the United States and its territories.^[1] This list consists of deployments excepting active combat deployments, including troops in Iraq, Syria, Yemen, and Somalia.^[2]

Outside of active combat, US personnel are typically deployed as part of several peacekeeping and classified missions, military attachés, or are part of embassy and consulate security.

Rationale

Statements by U.S. military and government

A longstanding justification for maintaining military installations worldwide for the United States is that a military presence abroad by the U.S. promotes and strengthens democracy.^[3]

Statements by others

According to Hermann and Kegley, military interventions have boosted democracy in other nations.^[4] The majority of academics, however, concur with professor of international politics Abraham Lowenthal that American efforts to spread democracy have been "negligible, often counterproductive, and only occasionally positive."^[4]^[5]^[6]

JoAnn Chirico believes that the U.S. military presence and installations are often considered responsible for suppressing democracy in countries such as Cameroon, Chad, Ethiopia, Jordan, Kuwait, Niger, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates.^[3]

In her essay, "Dictatorships and Double Standards", Jeane Kirkpatrick argued that although the United States should encourage democracy, it should be understood that premature reforms may cause a backlash that could give the Communists an opportunity to take over. For this reason, she considered it legitimate to support non-communist dictatorships, adding that a successful and sustainable democratic process is likely to be a long-term process in many cases in the Third World. The essence of the so-called Kirkpatrick Doctrine is the use of selective methods to advance democracy in order to contain the wave of communism.^[7]

Current deployments

The following regional tables provide detail of where personnel from six branches of the US military are currently deployed. These numbers do not include any military or civilian contractors or their dependents. Additionally, countries in which US military are engaged in active combat operations are not included. The numbers are based on the most recent United States Department of Defense statistics as of June 30, 2024.^[1]

Americas

Jurisdiction	Total	Army	Navy	USAF	USMC	USCG	USSF
United States (excl. Alaska & Hawaii)	1,062,976	364,198	273,546	243,497	137,903	35,130	8,702
Alaska	20,618	10,234	41	8,567	8	1,755	13
Puerto Rico	631	–	37	22	10	562	–
Guantanamo Bay	572	122	417	–	27	6	–
Honduras	335	205	2	119	8	1	–
Canada	156	29	36	69	15	4	3
Greenland	139	–	–	110	–	–	29
other	695	140	143	72	278	59	3
Total	1,086,122	374,928	274,222	252,456	138,249	37,517	8,750

East Asia, Southeast Asia, and Pacific Ocean

Jurisdiction	Total	Army	Navy	USAF	USMC	USCG	USSF
Japan	52,852	2,319	22,060	12,356	16,009	19	89
Hawaii	44,747	18,445	12,709	5,428	6,540	1,467	158
South Korea	23,732	15,042	339	8,117	158	1	75
Guam	6,453	–	3,785	2,284	88	295	1
Australia	300	48	79	141	23	2	7
Singapore	221	16	163	23	11	8	–
Thailand	108	33	9	26	39	1	–
other	338	96	47	40	145	10	–
Total	128,751	35,999	39,191	28,415	23,013	1,803	330

Europe

Jurisdiction	Total	Army	Navy	USAF	USMC	USCG	USSF
Germany	34,894	21,049	381	12,892	399	11	162
Italy	12,319	4,016	3,454	4,764	58	1	26
United Kingdom	10,180	217	284	9,559	51	14	55
Spain	3,253	30	2,783	406	33	1	–
Belgium	1,119	611	88	384	34	–	2
Netherlands	405	115	26	215	13	34	2
Greece	393	13	349	25	6	–	–
Poland	281	143	96	32	10	–	–
Portugal	254	6	51	179	17	1	–
Romania	140	24	96	12	8	–	–
other	648	159	67	177	238	6	1
Total	63,886	26,383	7,675	28,645	867	68	248

West Asia, Central Asia, South Asia, Africa, and Indian Ocean

Jurisdiction	Total	Army	Navy	USAF	USMC	USCG	USSF
Bahrain	3,424	24	2,833	21	209	337	–
Turkey	1,683	121	7	1,525	30	–	–
Kuwait	500	468	3	21	8	–	–
Saudi Arabia	270	167	15	65	23	–	–
Diego Garcia	234	–	234	–	–	–	–
Qatar	214	76	6	110	7	–	15
Egypt	151	107	7	17	20	–	–
United Arab Emirates	131	25	19	35	52	–	–
Israel	118	67	10	13	28	–	–
Jordan	98	68	4	13	13	–	–
other	994	209	76	107	601	1	–
Total	7,817	1,332	3,214	1,927	991	338	15

Unspecified

Jurisdiction	Total	Army	Navy	USAF	USMC	USCG	USSF
Overseas (incl. unincorporated US territories)	7,612	1,482	12	1,174	4,912	4	28
Domestic (50 states and District of Columbia)	3	3	–	–	–	–	–
Total	7,615	1,485	12	1,174	4,912	4	28

References

^ ^a ^b "Number of Military and DoD Appropriated Fund (APF) Civilian Personnel By Assigned Duty Location and Service/Component (as of June 30, 2024)". Defense Manpower Data Center. August 13, 2024.
^ "Letter to the Speaker of the House and President Pro Tempore of the Senate regarding the War Powers Report". whitehouse.gov. December 7, 2023.
^ ^a ^b Chirico 2014, p. 70.
^ ^a ^b Hermann, Margaret G.; Kegley, Charles (1998). "The U.S. Use of Military Intervention to Promote Democracy: Evaluating the Record". International Interactions. 24 (2): 91–114. doi:10.1080/03050629808434922.
^ Lowenthal, Abraham (1991). The United States and Latin American Democracy: Learning from History. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 243–65.
^ Peceny, Mark (1999). Democracy at the Point of Bayonets. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press. p. 183. ISBN 0-271-01883-6.^{[dead link]}
^ Wright 2007, p. 29.

Chirico, JoAnn (2014). Globalization: Prospects and Problems. SAGE Publication Ltd. p. 71. ISBN 9781483315447.
Wright, Steven (2007). The United States and Persian Gulf Security. Ithaca Press. ISBN 978-0-86372-321-6.