the future of US bases in the Gulf states. He stated that the intensified Iranian targeting during the war has raised new doubts about the viability of maintaining large, permanent military installations near the Arabian Gulf, and perhaps elsewhere around the world.
The magazine noted that one of the most prominent voices calling for a fundamental reassessment of the U.S. military posture near Iran is a man who recently oversaw the sprawling network of military bases in the region. General Kenneth F. McKenzie, commander of U.S. Central Command from March 2019 to April 2022, said he had long advocated for change in this regard, and that the confrontation with Iran had reinforced his conviction that priorities needed to be reprioritized, including the deployment of air defense systems.
What we want is to deploy this series of bases in the far west, where it is difficult for the Iranians to see us and determine the range of our missiles.
At a virtual conference held on Monday and hosted by the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, and attended by the Newsweek team, McKenzie said: “What we want is to deploy this series of bases in the far west, where it is difficult for the Iranians to see us and determine the range of our missiles.”
“While we must recognize that the range of Iranian missiles will increase over time, my focus is on solving today’s problem,” added McKenzie, a senior fellow at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America.
In response to a question from Newsweek about the lessons learned from the war with Iran, he cited the example of Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, which is a forward headquarters for the US Central Command, describing it as “a testament to old thinking” in the midst of a bold new era of modern hybrid sites and great strategic value for influencing wider regions, including Asia-Pacific and Europe.
McKenzie said: “We need the ability to move, the ability to camouflage our positions, and that requires not only careful management of electromagnetic radiation, but also an understanding of what is watching us in space and how to deal with it. This, in turn, requires a very sophisticated understanding not only of military aerial imaging systems in the non-air domain, but also of the vast number of commercial aerial imaging systems available.”
He added: “We must know, understand, and master how to use this capability, this potential, to help us and harm our potential enemies,” and “these lessons are applicable anywhere and in any conflict.”
With regard to the Middle East, McKenzie recommended, first and foremost, Israel as a prime candidate to consolidate some of the most important equipment of the U.S. military, given its strong air defense network.
He also saw an opportunity to maintain a presence in key locations in the Arabian Gulf, focusing primarily on strengthening missile and drone defenses, fortifying infrastructure, and enhancing cooperation with host countries.
Such a review could improve the current strategy. After all, as McKenzie pointed out, the roots of the American bases in the Arabian Gulf go back to Cold War efforts to protect the oil-rich region from a possible clash with the Soviet Union, and later to meet the needs of counterinsurgency campaigns that followed the events of September 11.
McKenzie added, “What we have is actually the product of past decisions regarding the military posture.” He said, “No sane person would locate the forward headquarters of U.S. Central Command 100 miles from Iran, yet that is where it is because when we established it many years ago, we were thinking about Iraq, Afghanistan, and other things, and we weren’t thinking about the growing Iranian threat.” He added, “Foresight is the essence of wisdom, and the choice of location for the forward headquarters of U.S. Central Command was not a wise one.”
When contacted for comment, a U.S. defense official told Newsweek: “We regularly monitor the regional security situation, including any potential threats to our deployed forces, and take all necessary precautions to protect them.”
McKenzie recommended Israel as a prime candidate to integrate some of the most important equipment of the US military, given its strong air defense network.
The defense official said: “We do not discuss details of troop protection for operational security reasons.”
The magazine adds that while the full extent of the US military presence abroad is classified, it is widely acknowledged that the United States maintains the largest number of foreign bases of any country in the world, with estimates exceeding 750 sites.
David Vine, an author and anthropologist who has written extensively about the dominance of the American base, offered an estimate of approximately 89 American military installations in the greater Middle East region, including Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, Naval Support Activity Bahrain, Camp Arifjan in Kuwait, Al Dhafra Air Base in the UAE, and Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia, which are among the most important hubs.
But despite superior American firepower, each of these sites and many others have been directly targeted by Iran.
Much of this came in the form of missiles and drones, such as the deadly strike on a temporary operations center at Kuwait’s Shuaiba port, although the Iranian F-5E strike on Kuwait’s Boring camp showed that even old conventional weapons can pose a threat.
The risks extended to the ceasefire first announced in April, and even after Washington and Tehran embraced diplomacy further through the memorandum of understanding signed on June 17 and promoted progress in follow-up talks, new tit-for-tat clashes saw the Revolutionary Guard launch attacks against eight US bases in Bahrain and Kuwait over the weekend.
“The U.S.-Israeli war on Iran raises a big, long-overdue question about the deeply flawed conventional wisdom that U.S. bases in the Middle East and around the world help defend the United States and other countries,” Fine told Newsweek.
He added: “The widespread damage that Iran has inflicted on U.S. military bases in the Persian Gulf and the wider region, including dozens of deaths and billions of dollars in infrastructure costs, has exposed to everyone the old myths about U.S. bases in the Middle East and the world.”
The widespread damage inflicted by Iran on American bases has exposed the long-held myths surrounding these bases in the Middle East and the world.
He said these “myths” revolve around the defensive nature, military effectiveness, and necessity of such bases for U.S. security. He argued that these facilities have encouraged offensive action at a significant cost, not only to American personnel and taxpayers, but also to the host countries.
Fine continued, “The US-Israeli war is therefore forcing a reassessment of the US military presence, not only in the Middle East, but also globally, and has led a growing number of analysts to conclude that the military should close and reinforce bases abroad and bring large numbers of troops home.”
The magazine said that plans are already underway to move forward with reducing the American presence. The Wall Street Journal indicated on Thursday that the Trump administration is seriously considering proposals to move vital operations westward, revealing a larger extent of the damage to the US naval support base in Bahrain, including a $400 million reconstruction cost, not including other damaged sites or millions of dollars in expenses.
Two officials who did not reveal their names indicated that Israel is a leading candidate, similar to McKinsey's recommendation.
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