List of countries with overseas military bases

The establishment of military bases abroad enables a country to project power, e.g. to conduct expeditionary warfare, and thereby to influence events abroad. Depending on their size and infrastructure, they can be used as staging areas or for logistical, communications and intelligence support. Many conflicts throughout modern history have resulted in overseas military bases being established in large numbers by world powers; and these bases have helped the countries that have established them to achieve political and military goals.

The United Kingdom and other colonial powers established overseas military bases in many of their colonies during the First and Second World Wars, where useful, and actively sought rights to facilities where needed for strategic reasons. At one time, the establishment of coaling stations for naval ships was important. During the Cold War, the United States and the Soviet Union established military bases where they could within their respective spheres of influence, and actively sought influence where needed. More recently, the War on Terror has resulted in overseas military bases being established in the Middle East.

Whilst the overall number of overseas military bases has fallen since 1945, the United States, Turkey, the United Kingdom, Russia and France still possess or utilize a substantial number of them. Smaller numbers of overseas military bases are operated by China, Iran, Iraq, India, Italy, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates.

The United States is the largest operator of military bases abroad, with 38 "named bases"^{[note 1]} with active duty, national guard, reserve, or civilian personnel as of September 30, 2014. Its largest, in terms of personnel, was Ramstein AB in Germany, with almost 9,200 personnel.^{[1][note 2]}

The United States has military bases in 45 countries and territories, i.e. outside its fifty states and the District of Columbia.^[96] Countries with U.S. bases include:

Country	Location
Ascension Island	Ascension Island Auxiliary Airfield
Albania	a new naval base is under construction[97][98][99]
Australia	Pine Gap; Marine Rotational Force – Darwin[100]
Bahamas	AUTEC
Bahrain	Naval Support Activity Bahrain; Isa Air Base
Belgium	Chièvres Air Base; Kleine Brogel Air Base
Bosnia and Herzegovina	NATO Headquarters Sarajevo[101]
British Indian Ocean Territory	Naval Support Facility Diego Garcia
Bulgaria	Aitos Logistics Center; Bezmer Air Base; Graf Ignatievo Air Base; Novo Selo Range
Cameroon	Contingency Location Garoua
Cuba	Guantanamo Bay Naval Base
Curaçao	U.S. Air Force Forward Operating Base
Djibouti	Camp Lemonnier
Estonia	Ämari Air Base
Germany	U.S. Military Installations in Germany; Panzer Kaserne; Ramstein Air Base; Spangdahlem Air Base; Baumholder Army Post; Landstuhl Regional Medical Center; Sembach Army Post;
Greece	Alexandroupoli Army Base, Larisa Air Base, Araxos Air Base, Syros base, Souda Bay Naval Base
Greenland	Pituffik Space Base
Honduras	Soto Cano Air Base
Iceland	Naval Air Station Keflavík
Iraq	Al Asad Airbase[102]
Israel	Dimona Radar Facility(AN/TPY-2 Surveillance Transportable Radar)[103]
Italy	Caserma Ederle-Caserma Del Din; Darby Military Community; Naval Air Station Sigonella; Naval Support Activity Naples; Aviano Air Base
Japan	United States Forces Japan
Jordan	Muwaffaq Salti Air Base
Kenya	Camp Simba, Armed Forces Research Institute of Medical Sciences
Kosovo	Camp Bondsteel
Kuwait	Ali Al Salem Air Base; Camp Arifjan; Camp Buehring; Kuwait Naval Base
Lithuania	Šiauliai Air Base
Netherlands	Volkel Air Base; USCG Activities Europe
Niger	Arlit;[104][105][106] Nigerien Air Base 201, Agadez;[104][107] Niamey[104]
Norway	Marine Corps garrison at Værnes Air Station
Oman	RAFO Masirah; RAFO Thumrait (South of Oman) [108]
Philippines	Antonio Bautista Air Base; Basa Air Base; Fort Magsaysay; Lumbia Air Base; Mactan-Benito Ebuen Air Base[109] See also: United States bases in the Philippines
Poland	Łask Air Base
Portugal	Lajes Field
Qatar	Al Udeid Air Base
Romania	Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base; Deveselu Military Base
Saudi Arabia	64th Air Expeditionary Group (inactive since 2014);[110] Prince Sultan Air Base[111]
Seychelles	United States drone base in Seychelles
Singapore	Paya Lebar Air Base; Changi Naval Base; Sembawang Naval Base; Changi Air Base
South Korea	United States Forces Korea
Spain	Morón Air Base; Naval Station Rota
Syria	Military base in Al-Tanf and several facilities in northern Syria, within U.S.-backed SDF territory[112]
Turkey	Incirlik Air Base, Izmir Air Station, Kürecik Radar Station, Ankara Support Facility
United Arab Emirates	Al Dhafra Air Base; Port of Jebel Ali; Fujairah Naval Base
United Kingdom	RAF Alconbury; RAF Croughton; RAF Fairford; RAF Lakenheath; RAF Menwith Hill; RAF Mildenhall; RAF Welford

• Power projection

• Cooley, A., & Nexon, D. (2013). “The Empire Will Compensate You”: The Structural Dynamics of the U.S. Overseas Basing Network. Perspectives on Politics, 11(4), 1034–1050.
• Vine, David (25 August 2015). Base Nation: How U.S. Military Bases Abroad Harm America and the World. New York: Henry Holt and Company. ISBN 978-1-62779-170-0.