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Iran Destroys a Fundamental U.S. Military Assumption about Forward Bases
(Washington Post) Max Boot - Since World War II, the U.S. has developed a far-flung network of 750 bases in 80 countries and territories. The presumption has always been that U.S. air superiority would keep those bases safe. The ongoing conflict with Iran, however, has revealed that this assumption no longer holds. Iran has used drones and missiles to inflict heavy losses on U.S. bases across the Persian Gulf region. A recent Defense Department inspector general report noted, "Iranian strikes damaged and destroyed hundreds of buildings and structures at U.S. bases in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman, and Jordan during the conflict. In addition, dozens of U.S. aircraft were destroyed or damaged." The damage was particularly significant at the headquarters of the U.S. Fifth Fleet in Bahrain, which was knocked out of action on Feb. 28, the first day of fighting. With the Bahrain port inoperable, the Navy had to rely on its base at Diego Garcia, 2,200 miles away, to supply the U.S. fleet in the Middle East.