Military deployments

This entry lists military forces deployed to other countries or territories abroad. The World Factbook defines deployed as a permanently stationed force or a temporary deployment of greater than six months. Deployments smaller than 100 personnel or paramilitaries, police, contractors, mercenaries, or proxy forces are not included. Numbers provided are estimates only and should be considered paper strengths, not necessarily the current number of troops on the ground. In addition, some estimates, such as those by the US military, are significantly influenced by deployment policies, contingencies, or world events and may change suddenly. Where available, the organization or mission that at least some of the forces are deployed under is listed. The following terms and abbreviations are used throughout the entry:

AMISOM - Africa Union (AU) Mission in Somalia; UN-supported, AU-operated peacekeeping mission

BATUS - British Army Training Unit Suffield, Canada

BATUK - British Army Training Unit, Kenya

CSTO - Collective Security Treaty Organization

ECOMIG - ECOWUS Mission in The Gambia; Africa Union-European Union peacekeeping, stabilization, and training mission in Gambia

EUTM - European Union Training Mission

EUFOR - European Union Force Bosnia and Herzegovina (also known as Operation Althea)

EuroCorps - European multi-national corps headquartered in Strasbourg, France, consisting of troops from Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, and Spain; Greece, Italy, Poland, Romania and Turkey are Associated Nations of EuroCorps

G5 Joint Force - G5 Sahel Cross-Border Joint Force comprised of troops from Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger

KFOR - the Kosovo Force; a NATO-led international peacekeeping force in Kosovo

MFO - Multinational Force & Observers Sinai, headquartered in Rome

MINUSCA - United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic

MINUSMA - United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali

MNJTF - Multinational Joint Task Force Against Boko Haram comprised of troops from Benin, Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria with the mission of fighting Boko Haram in the Lake Chad Basin

MONUSCO - United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

NATO - North American Treaty Organization, headquartered in Brussels, Belgium

Operation Barkhane - French-led counterinsurgency and counter-terrorism mission in the Sahel alongside the G5 Joint Force; headquartered in N’Djamena, Chad and supported by Canada, Denmark, Estonia, the European Union, Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the US

Operation Inherent Resolve - US-led coalition to counter the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria and provide assistance and training to Iraqi security forces

UNAFIL - United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon

UNAMID - African Union - United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur, Sudan

UNDOF - United Nations Disengagement Observer Force, Golan (Israel-Syria border)

UNFICYP - United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus

UNISFA - United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (Sudan-South Sudan border)

UNMISS - United Nations Mission in the Republic of South Sudan

UNSOM - United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia

Angola

in 2023, Angola agreed to send 500 troops to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) for 12 months to oversee cantonment of a rebel group known as M23, though as of publication few troops had actually deployed. Angola has also deployed military advisors as part of a SADC deployment to confront ISIS-M in Mozambique.

Argentina

225 Cyprus (UNFICYP) (2023)

Australia

note: since the 1990s, Australia has deployed more than 30,000 personnel on nearly 100 UN peacekeeping and coalition military operations, including in Cambodia, Rwanda, the Solomon Islands, Somalia, and East Timor

Austria

170 Bosnia-Herzegovina (EUFOR stabilization force); 250 Kosovo (NATO/KFOR); 200 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2023)

Bangladesh

approximately 1,400 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 1,650 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO; plus about 200 police); 120 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 1,600 South Sudan (UNMISS); 150 Sudan (UNISFA) (2023)

Belgium

125 France (EuroCorps); 325 Eastern Europe (NATO); 100 Middle East; 325 Niger (2023)

note: in response to Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries, including Belgium, have sent additional troops and equipment to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in eastern Europe

Benin

250 Mali (MINUSMA) (2023)

Botswana

approximately 300 Mozambique (Southern African Development Community force) (2023)

Burundi

750 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); more than 3,000 in Somalia (ATMIS; note - foreign troop contingents under ATMIS are drawing down towards a final exit in December 2024) (2023)

Cambodia

225 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 180 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2023)

Cameroon

750 (plus about 350 police) Central African Republic (MINUSCA) (May 2022)

note: Cameroon has committed approximately 2,000-2,500 troops to the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) against Boko Haram and other terrorist groups operating in the general area of the Lake Chad Basin and along Nigeria's northeast border; national MNJTF troop contingents are deployed within their own country territories, although cross‐border operations occur occasionally

Canada

the CAF has approximately 1,000 military personnel forward deployed for NATO air, land, and sea missions in the European theater, including a ground task force in Latvia (2023)

note: in response to Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries, including Canada, have sent additional troops and equipment to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in eastern Europe

Chad

note: Chad has committed approximately 1,000-1,500 troops to the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) against Boko Haram and other terrorist groups operating in the general area of the Lake Chad Basin and along Nigeria's northeast border; national MNJTF troop contingents are deployed within their own territories, although cross‐border operations are conducted periodically; in 2019, Chad sent more than 1,000 troops to Nigeria’s Borno State to fight Boko Haram as part of the MNJTF mission

China

225 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO); 420 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 1,050 South Sudan (UNMISS); 150 Sudan/South Sudan (UNISFA); up to 2,000 Djibouti (2023)

Colombia

275 Egypt (MFO) (2023)

Croatia

150 Kosovo (KFOR/NATO) (2023)

note: in response to Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries have sent additional troops and equipment to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in eastern Europe

Czechia

up to 130 Lithuania (NATO); 130 Slovakia (NATO) (2023)

note: in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries have sent additional troops and equipment to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in eastern Europe

Denmark

approximately 225 Estonia (NATO); approximately 800 Latvia (NATO) (2023)

note: in response to Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries, including Denmark, have sent additional troops and equipment to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in eastern Europe

Djibouti

approximately 960 Somalia (ATMIS; note - ATMIS troop contingents are drawing down towards a final exit in December 2024); Djibouti has about 200 police deployed to the Central African Republic under MINUSCA (2023)

Egypt

1,000 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); (2023)

El Salvador

110 Mali (MINUSMA) (2023)

Ethiopia

approximately 5-8,000 in Somalia (up to 4,000 for ATMIS; the remainder under a bilateral agreement with the Somali Government; note - foreign troop contingents in Somalia under ATMIS are drawing down towards a final withdrawal in December 2024); 1,450 South Sudan (UNMISS) (2023)

European Union

since 2003, the EU has launched more than 30 civilian and military crisis-management, advisory, and training missions in Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East, as well as counter-piracy operations off the coast of Somalia and a naval operation in the Mediterranean to disrupt human smuggling and trafficking networks and prevent the loss of life at sea (2023)

note: in response to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the EU announced that it would develop a rapid deployment force consisting of up to 5,000 troops by 2025

Fiji

170 Egypt (MFO); 160 Iraq (UNAMI); 150 Golan Heights (UNDOF) (2023)

Finland

225 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2023)

France

approximately 300 Central African Republic; approximately 1,000 Chad; 300 Comoros; approximately 900 Cote d'Ivoire; approximately 1,400 Djibouti; 300 Estonia (NATO); approximately 2,000 French Guyana; approximately 900 French Polynesia; approximately 1,000 French West Indies; 350 Gabon; approximately 500 Middle East (Iraq/Jordan/Syria); 650 Lebanon (UNIFIL); approximately 1,400 New Caledonia; approximately 1,500 Niger (France has pledged to remove these troops by the end of 2023); approximately 1,700 Reunion Island; approximately 800 Romania (NATO); approximately 350 Senegal; approximately 650 United Arab Emirates (2023)

note: in response to Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries, including France, have sent additional troops to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in eastern Europe

Germany

up to 500 Iraq (NATO); up to 1,400 Lithuania (NATO); 100 Niger; 280 Slovakia (NATO) (2023)

note: in response to Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries, including Germany, have sent additional troops and equipment to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in eastern Europe

Ghana

875 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 725 (plus about 275 police) South Sudan (UNMISS); 650 Sudan (UNISFA) (2023)

note: since sending a contingent of troops to the Congo in 1960, the military has been a regular contributor to African- and UN-sponsored peacekeeping missions

Greece

approximately 1,000 Cyprus; 100 Kosovo (NATO); 140 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2023)

Guatemala

150 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) (2023)

Guinea

670 Mali (MINUSMA) (2023)

Hungary

150 Bosnia-Herzegovina (EUFOR stabilization force); 150 Iraq (NATO); 430 Kosovo (NATO/KFOR) (2023)

India

1,800 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO); 200 Golan Heights (UNDOF); 675 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 2,300 South Sudan (UNMISS); 580 Sudan (UNISFA) (2023)

Indonesia

225 (plus about 140 police) Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 1,025 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO); 1,225 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2023)

Iran

continues to maintain a military presence in Syria reportedly of a few thousand personnel, mostly of special operations and IRGC forces (2023)

note: Iran has recruited, trained, and funded thousands of Syrian and foreign fighters to support the ASAD regime during the Syrian civil war

Ireland

130 Golan Heights (UNDOF); 325 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2023)

Italy

120 Djibouti; approximately 750 Bulgaria (NATO); approximately 1,000 Middle East (NATO, European Assistance Mission Iraq); 850 Kosovo (NATO/KFOR); 250 Latvia (NATO); 1,000 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 400 Libya; 350 Niger; 250 Romania (NATO); 150 Somalia (EUTM) (2023)

note: in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries, including Italy, have sent additional troops and equipment to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in eastern Europe

Japan

approximately 200 Djibouti (2023)

Jordan

330 Mali (MINUSMA) (2023)

Kenya

260 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO); up to 3,600 troops deployed in Somalia under ATMIS (note - ATMIS troop contingents are drawing down towards a final exit in December 2024) (2023)

note: in November 2022, Kenya sent approximately 1,000 troops to the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) as part of a newly formed East Africa Community Regional Force (EACRF) to assist the DRC military against the rebel group M23; the force is led by Kenya

Korea, South

250 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 275 South Sudan (UNMISS); 170 United Arab Emirates; note - since 2009, South Korea has kept a naval flotilla with approximately 300 personnel in the waters off of the Horn of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula (2023)

Latvia

130 Kosovo (KFOR/NATO) (2023)

Liberia

160 Mali (MINUSMA) (2023)

Lithuania

note: contributes about 350-550 troops to the Lithuania, Poland, and Ukraine joint military brigade (LITPOLUKRBRIG), which was established in 2014; the brigade is headquartered in Poland and is comprised of an international staff, three battalions, and specialized units; units affiliated with the multinational brigade remain within the structures of the armed forces of their respective countries until the brigade is activated for participation in an international operation

Malawi

750 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) (2023)

Malaysia

830 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2023)

Mali

note: until announcing its withdrawal in May of 2022, Mali was part of a five-nation anti-jihadist task force known as the G5 Sahel Group, set up in 2014 with Burkina Faso, Chad, Mauritania, and Niger; Mali had committed 1,100 troops and 200 gendarmes to the force

Mauritania

450 (plus about 320 police) Central African Republic (MINUSCA) (2023)

Mongolia

860 South Sudan (UNMISS) (2023)

note: from 2003 to July 2021, some 3,300 Mongolian troops served in Afghanistan, including about 1,300 under the NATO-led Resolute Support Mission (2015 to 2021); since 2002, Mongolia has deployed more than 19,000 peacekeepers and observers to UN operations in more than a dozen countries

Morocco

775 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 925 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) (2023)

Nepal

1225 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 1,150 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO); 400 Golan Heights (UNDOF); 875 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 225 Liberia (UNSMIL); 175 Mali (MINUSMA); 1,750 (plus about 220 police) South Sudan (UNMISS) (2023)

Netherlands

350 Lithuania (NATO); 200 Romania (NATO) (2023)

note: in response to Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries, including the Netherlands, have sent additional troops and equipment to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in eastern Europe

New Zealand

up to 220 Antarctica (summer season only) (2022)

Niger

note: Niger also has committed about 1,000 troops to the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) against Boko Haram and other terrorist groups operating in the general area of the Lake Chad Basin and along Nigeria's northeast border; national MNJTF troop contingents are deployed within their own country territories, although cross‐border operations are conducted periodically

Nigeria

175 Sudan/South Sudan (UNISFA) (2023)

note: Nigeria has committed an Army combat brigade (approximately 3,000 troops) to the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), a regional counter-terrorism force comprised of troops from Benin, Cameroon, Chad, and Niger; MNJTF conducts operations against Boko Haram and other terrorist groups operating in the general area of the Lake Chad Basin and along Nigeria's northeast border; national MNJTF troop contingents are deployed within their own country territories, although cross‐border operations are conducted periodically

Norway

up to 200 Lithuania (NATO) (2023)

note: in response to Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries, including Norway, have sent additional troops and equipment to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in eastern Europe

Pakistan

1,300 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 1,900 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO); 275 South Sudan (UNMISS); 575 Sudan (UNISFA) (2023)

Peru

225 Central African Republic (MINUSCA) (2023)

Poland

250 Kosovo (NATO/KFOR); up to 180 Latvia (NATO); 200 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 230 Romania (NATO) (2023)

note 1: Poland has obligated about 2,500 troops to the Lithuania, Poland, and Ukraine joint military brigade (LITPOLUKRBRIG), which was established in 2014; the brigade is headquartered in Poland and is comprised of an international staff, three battalions, and specialized units; units affiliated with the multinational brigade remain within the structures of the armed forces of their respective countries until the brigade is activated for participation in an international operation

note 2: in response to Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries, including Poland, have committed additional troops and equipment to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in the Baltic States and eastern Europe

Portugal

225 Central African Republic (MINUSCA/EUTM); approximately 200 Lithuania (NATO); approximately 230 Romania (NATO) (2023)

note 1: in 2021, Portugal deployed about 80 troops to Mozambique to assist with the EU training mission

note 2: in response to Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries, including Portugal, have sent additional troops to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in eastern Europe

note 3: Portugal also participates in several NATO maritime and air policing operations, as well as some EU international missions

Romania

up to 120 Poland (NATO) (2023)

Russia

information varies; approximately 3,000 Armenia; approximately 2,000 Armenia/Azerbaijan (peacekeepers for Nagorno-Karabakh); up to 5,000 Belarus; up to 10,000 Georgia; approximately 500 Kyrgyzstan; approximately 1,500 Moldova (Transnistria); estimated 2,000-5,000 Syria; approximately 3-5,000 Tajikistan (2023)

note 1: in February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine with an estimated 150,000 troops; prior to the invasion, it maintained an estimated 30,000 troops in areas of Ukraine occupied since 2014; in 2023, the Russian Government claimed to have over 650,000 troops in occupied Ukraine

note 2: as of 2023, Russia was assessed to have about 3,000-5,000 private military contractors conducting military and security operations in Africa and the Middle East, including in the Central African Republic, Libya, Mali, Sudan, and Syria

Rwanda

4,000 Central African Republic (approximately 2,800 for MINUSCA, including 700 police; an additional 1,200 troops sent separately under a bilateral arrangement to support and train Central African military forces); up to 3,000 Mozambique (deployed mid-2021 under a bilateral agreement to assist with combating an insurgency; includes both military and police forces); 2,600 (plus about 400 police) South Sudan (UNMISS) (2023)

Saudi Arabia

continues to maintain a military presence in Yemen; has also established and supports several local militias, including the National Shield Forces in Aden and the Amajid Brigade in Abyan (2023)

Senegal

200 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 950 Mali (MINUSMA); note - Senegal also has up to 1,000 police deployed to UN peacekeeping missions in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA), and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) (2023)

Serbia

175 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2023)

Singapore

maintains permanent training detachments of military personnel in Australia, France, and the US (2023)

Slovakia

240 Cyprus (UNFICYP); up to 150 Latvia (NATO) (2023)

note: in response to Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries, including Slovakia, have sent additional troops and equipment to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in eastern Europe

Slovenia

200 Kosovo (NATO); 100 Slovakia (NATO) (2023)

note: in response to Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries, including Slovenia, have sent additional troops and equipment to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in eastern Europe

South Africa

1,150 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO); up to 1,500 Mozambique (part of a Southern African Development Community force to help quell an insurgency) (2023)

South Sudan

in 2023, South Sudan sent approximately 750 troops to the Democratic Republic of the Congo as part of an East Africa Community military peacekeeping force

Spain

approximately 200 Iraq (NATO/EU training assistance); up to 600 Latvia (NATO); 650 Lebanon (UNIFIL); approximately 200 Romania (NATO); approximately 500 Mali (EUTM); 150 Turkey (NATO) (2022)

note 1: as of 2023, up to 3,000 Spanish soldiers and civil guards were deployed on 17 missions on four continents

note 2: in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries, including Spain, have sent additional troops and equipment to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in eastern Europe

Sri Lanka

100 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 125 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 240 Mali (MINUSMA) (2023)

Sudan

approximately 750 Democratic Republic of the Congo (East African Community stabilization force)

reportedly continues to maintain several hundred troops in Yemen; Sudan joined the Saudi-led coalition that intervened in Yemen in 2015, providing as many as 40,000 troops during the peak of the war in 2016-17, mostly from the Rapid Support Forces; by 2021, Sudan had reduced the size of the force to about a brigade (approximately 2-3,000 troops) (2022)

Sweden

the Swedish military has small numbers of personnel deployed on multiple EU-, NATO-, and UN-led missions (2023)

Switzerland

up to 165 Kosovo (NATO/KFOR) (2023)

Tanzania

575 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 850 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO); 125 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2023)

note: in 2021, Tanzania began contributing troops to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) intervention force that was assisting the Mozambique Government's fight against Islamic militants

Thailand

275 South Sudan (UNMISS) (2023)

Tunisia

775 Central African Republic (MINUSCA) (2023)

Turkey (Turkiye)

approximately 150 (Azerbaijan; monitoring cease-fire, clearing mines); 250 Bosnia-Herzegovina (EUFOR); approximately 30-35,000 Cyprus; up to 10,000 Iraq (numbers depend on military operations); 800 Kosovo (NATO/KFOR); 110 Lebanon (UNIFIL); estimated 500 Libya; up to 5,000 Qatar; approximately 200 Somalia (training mission); up to 10,000 Syria (numbers depend on military operations) (2023)

note 1: between 2016 and 2020, Turkey conducted four significant military ground campaigns in northern Syria with the stated purpose of securing its southern border; Turkey also has deployed troops into northern Iraq on numerous occasions to combat the Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK), including large operations involving thousands of troops in 2007, 2011, and 2018, and smaller-scale operations in 2021 and 2022; Turkey has also conducted numerous air strikes in both Iraq and Syria

Uganda

approximately 6,500 Somalia (625 for UNSOM; the remainder under ATMIS; note - foreign troop contingents in Somalia under ATMIS are drawing down towards a final withdrawal in December 2024); 250 Equatorial Guinea (training mission) (2023)

note: in December 2022, Uganda sent approximately 1,000 troops to the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) as part of a newly formed East Africa Community Regional Force (EACRF) to assist the DRC military against the rebel group M23

Ukraine

note: prior to the Russian invasion in 2022, Ukraine had committed about 500 troops to the Lithuania, Poland, and Ukraine joint military brigade (LITPOLUKRBRIG), which was established in 2014; the brigade is headquartered in Poland and is comprised of an international staff, three battalions, and specialized units; units affiliated with the multinational brigade remain within the structures of the armed forces of their respective countries until the brigade is activated for participation in an international operation

United Arab Emirates

continues to maintain a small force in Yemen; also maintains some troops at military bases in Eritrea and Somalia (Somaliland) (2023)

note: in 2015, UAE intervened militarily in Yemen as part of the Saudi-led coalition in support of the Republic of Yemen Government with an estimated 3,500 troops, as well as supporting air and naval forces; UAE withdrew its main military force from Yemen in 2019, but has retained a small military presence while working with proxies in southern Yemen, most notably the Southern Transitional Council (STC)

United Kingdom

approximately 1,000 Brunei; approximately 400 Canada (BATUS); approximately 2,500 Cyprus (250 for UNFICYP); approximately 1,000 Estonia (NATO); approximately 1,200 Falkland Islands; approximately 200 Germany; 570 Gibraltar; more than 1,000 Middle East (counter-ISIS campaign); up to 350 Kenya (BATUK); 150 Poland (NATO) (2023)

note: in response to Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries, including the UK, have sent additional troops and equipment to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in eastern Europe; as of 2023, UK had about 8,000 troops deployed in various countries in Europe supporting NATO and European security through exercises and task forces, including in Estonia, Finland, Germany, Lithuania, and North Macedonia

United States

5,000 Africa; 1,700 Australia; 250 Diego Garcia; 150 Canada; 650 Cuba (Guantanamo Bay); 290 Egypt (MFO); approximately 85-100,000 Europe; 150 Greenland; 6,200 Guam; 370 Honduras; 55,000 Japan; approximately 15,000 Middle East; 125 Philippines; 28,000 South Korea; 200 Singapore; 100 Thailand (2023)

note: US military rotational policies affect deployment sizes, and the numbers given may fluctuate; the US deploys ground and air units to select countries for 6-12 month rotational assignments on a continuous basis; in South Korea, for example, the US regularly rotates combat brigades (approximately 3,000 personnel) for 9 months at a time; contingencies also affect US troop deployments; in 2019-2020, the US deployed more than 15,000 additional military personnel to the Middle East for an extended period of time and has sent more than 30,000 reinforcements to Europe in response to the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022; in addition, some overseas US naval bases, such as the headquarters of US Naval Forces Central Command (USNAVCENT) in Manama, Bahrain, are frequented by the crews of US ships on 6-9 month deployments; a US carrier strike group with an air wing and supporting ships typically includes over 6,000 personnel