(Reuters) - The United States and some Western allies deploy weaponry and other military equipment in the energy-rich Gulf to provide security to Gulf Arab states at short notice.
Here is a list of equipment currently deployed, according to research institutions, mostly at bases shared with host states.
KUWAIT
USA CENTCOM: 23,000 personnel.
One Heavy Brigade Combat Team, also known as an Armored Brigade Combat Team. Its main equipment includes: A tank battalion with four companies of M1 Abrams tanks, an armored infantry battalion with four companies of M2 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles (in practice these two battalions operate as 'combined arms' units with 2 companies of M1 and 2 companies of M2 each), a reconnaissance battalion with 3 companies of M3 Bradley armored reconnaissance vehicle and an artillery battalion with 2 companies with M109 howitzers.)
One Army National Guard combat aviation brigade.
One Army National Guard support brigade.
Two air defense batteries with a total of 16 Patriot advanced capability PAC-3 batteries.
One prepositioned Heavy Brigade Combat Team.
In addition there is a battalion with signals, engineers and intelligence units and another with service support elements.
Kuwaiti bases such as Camp Arifjan, Ali Al Salem Air Field, and Camp Buehring offer the United States major staging hubs, training ranges, and logistical support for regional operations.
OMAN
UK Army 30 personnel; UK Navy 20 personnel. Air Force 30 Personnel. One Tristar transport and fuel tanker plane, one Sentinel reconnaissance aircraft.
USA - A 2010 security agreement permits the United States to retain a small military footprint and grants U.S. forces access, with advanced notice and for specialized purposes, to military facilities in Masirah, Muscat, and Thumrait, as well as allowing the US to pre-stage munitions at these facilities.
QATAR
UK AIR FORCE; 4 Hercules C-130j transport aircraft.
USA CENTCOM: 600 personnel.
One Prepositioned Heavy Brigade Combat Set;
Combined Air Operations Center (CAOC): At the CAOC, U.S. military officials manage airspace authority, air defense, electronic warfare, and personnel recovery in 20 regional countries, including Afghanistan.
The 379th Air Expeditionary Wing at al-Udeid hosts U.S. Air Forces Central Command's (AFCENT) bigger aircraft. A typical inventory would be: A flight of B-1B bombers, two squadrons of KC-135 tankers, two RC-135 intelligence gatherers, a detachment of C-130s for medium haul transport, a US Navy P-3 maritime patrol detachment.
BAHRAIN
USA-The US base is known as Naval Support Activity Bahrain, housing the headquarters of the U.S. Fifth Fleet and U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (USNAVCENT). USNAVCENT supports ships and locations throughout the Commander USNAVCENT Area of Responsibility. US Centcom deploys 2,100 personnel.
The Kingdom's ports regularly host US-ported carrier and amphibious battle groups and are the enduring home to U.S. Navy vessels such as minesweepers and costal patrol boats.
The U.S. facilities also provide bases for American naval surveillance aircraft, and may eventually have the ability to host special operations forces. The United States has made a significant investment in military facilities, starting a 5-year $580 million US-funded construction project in 2010.
5th FLEET
EQUIPMENT BY TYPE.
2 Nuclear powered aircraft carriers
2 Guided missile cruisers
2 Destroyers with anti-ship missiles and surface to air missiles and hangars
3 Destroyers with anti-ship missiles and surface to air missiles
5 Offshore patrol craft
1 Amphibious assault ship
1 Landing platform dock
1 Landing ship dock
1 Fast combat support ship
The BAHRAIN base also hosts international coalitions known as Combined Maritime Force (CMF).
Combined Task Forces 150 operates in the Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman, the Arabian Sea, Red Sea, and the Northern Indian Ocean, to counter terrorism and prevent smuggling.
Task Force 151 is dedicated to counter-piracy. It operates in the Gulf of Aden and off the eastern coast of Somalia. There is no defined eastern limit to the AOR; it is dependent on the activities and operational area of the pirates.
Task Force 152 is dedicated to maritime security cooperation, operating in the international waters of the Gulf from the Straits of Hormuz in the South, to the maritime borders of Iran and Iraq in the north. It works with all Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations.
Combined Task Force 152, U.S. vessels:
8 Avenger-class Countermeasures Vessels
1 AFSB Afloat Forward Staging Base. In this case the USS Ponce, a former Austin-class Landing Platform Dock, now converted into a 'mothership' for mine-countermeasures vessels and helicopters, and other littoral operations units.
6 US Coast Guard Island-class Cutters.
5 Cyclone-class patrol craft
Combined Maritime Forces, other U.S. vessels
5th Fleet's Logistics and Support Task Force - also provides support to CMF more generally
1 Auxiliary ammunition carrier
2 Cargo/Ammunition carrier
4 oilers
UK Air force: 1 BAe-125 CC-3 transport aircraft; One BAe-146 MK II transport and communications aircraft.
UK - The same Bahrain base is also the headquarters of the United Kingdom Maritime Component Command (UKMCC).ho commands Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships in the Middle East. He also serves under US Fifth Fleet as the Deputy Commander of the Combined Maritime Forces.
SAUDI ARABIA
US CENTCOM: 270 PERSONNEL
UAE
AUSTRALIA: 313 personnel. One transport detachment, with three C-130 Hercules; One maritime patrol detachment with two AP-3C Orion surveillance aircraft.
FRANCE: 800 personnel. Six Rafale warplanes. One KC-135F transport aircraft. One Foreign Legion Battle Group -- reconnaissance squadrons, two infantry squadrons, one artillery battery, one engineering company.
SOUTH KOREA - 140 personnel training activities at the UAE special forces operations school.
USA - 175 personnel. Two batteries with MIM-104 Patriots.
More U.S. Navy ships visit the port at Jebel Ali, which can handle vessels up to the size of nuclear carriers, than any other port outside the United States. Al Dhafra Air Base hosts a number of U.S. fighter, attack, and reconnaissance aircraft of the U.S. 380th Air Expeditionary Wing.
Sources: International Institute for Strategic Studies, Military Balance 2013 and IISS staff, Center for Strategic and International Studies, Washington, Gulf Military Balance, Sixth Draft 2011.
(Reporting by William Maclean)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/factbox-western-forces-gulf-134733188.html
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