Lynchpin or Liability: The Effects of Foreign Base Possession on American Foreign Policy

Abstract

The United States military prides itself on having global reach - the ability to conduct operations anywhere in the world at any time. However, the long arm of the U.S. military is often criticized as being overbearing and too frequently meddling in issues abroad. Resentment of the utilization of this power leads to delicate diplomatic situations and shifts in foreign policy relationships with international allies and enemies alike. One tool the U.S. military employs to extend their reach is the possession of permanently established bases in other countries, whether being official or unofficial ally states. The United States currently operates around 800 bases abroad in over 150 different territories and countries. Examples include Caserma Ederle in Italy, US Army Garrison Baumholder in Germany, Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti, Busan Naval Base in South Korea, and Yokota and Kadena Air Bases in Japan. These bases tie the U.S. to the countries they are located in and extend both U.S. power and the host country's defensive capabilities. In many situations, they affect the local population's perception of the United States and can be used as leverage by local or national governments. The presence of these U.S. bases are highly unusual in an international sense - for example, one of the greatest American adversaries, China, has only one foreign military base. Russia, France, and Great Britain (other 'great powers') have less than 60 combined. The bases are a source of risk; U.S. servicemembers are expected to behave when stationed at or visiting the installations, and missteps can prove disastrous - take, for example, the 1995 rape of a young local girl by servicemembers in Okinawa, Japan. Though much research has been done on the economics of maintaining U.S. military bases abroad, as well as effects on the local population, not much literature exists on how the presence of a more permanent military installation in an ally country affects foreign policy relations. In order to explore this topic further, I ask: how does the presence of U.S. military bases in foreign countries affect political relations?