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YONGSAN GARRISON, South Korea — Half of the U.S. Army’s Apache helicopter force will permanently leave the peninsula next year for a new stateside home, military officials said Sunday. The 1st Battalion, 2nd Aviation Regiment, currently stationed at Camp Eagle in Wonju, will move to Ft. Carson, Colo., in March, according to a press release from U.S. Forces Korea. The relocation will allow the regiment to prepare for an upcoming deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan, according to USFK spokesman Dave Palmer. That deployment is scheduled for fall of 2009, Palmer wrote Sunday in response to questions. The battalion includes 24...

NewsBusters has learned that presumptive Democrat presidential nominee Barack Obama has cancelled plans to visit two U.S. military bases while in Germany, this despite having all kinds of time to speak to gushing Berliners as well as getting in a workout at the Ritz Carlton.One of the bases, The Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, "is an overseas military hospital operated by the U.S. Army and the Department of Defense...[that] serves as the nearest treatment center for wounded soldiers coming from Iraq and Afghanistan."Yet, as Ed Morrissey's Hot Air reported a few hours ago, Spiegel Online claimed at 1:42 PM local time...

++ Visit to US Military Bases Cancelled ++ 1:42 p.m.: SPIEGEL ONLINE has learned that Obama has cancelled a planned short visit to the Rammstein and Landstuhl US military bases in the southwest German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. The visits were planned for Friday. "Barack Obama will not be coming to us," a spokesperson for the US military hospital in Landstuhl announced. "I don't know why." Shortly before the same spokeswoman had announced a planned visit by Obama.

Legislation that would restrict the sale of certain men's magazines on U.S. military bases around the world would be bad for morale, according to soldiers at Grafenwöhr. U.S. Rep. Paul Broun, R-Ga., has introduced legislation that would close a loophole in the current law that allows the sale of some sexually explicit material on military bases by lowering the threshold required to deem material "sexually explicit." A Department of Defense committee that reviews materials sold on bases ruled last year that magazines such as Playboy and Penthouse are not pornographic. But Broun's Military Honor and Decency Act includes language that...

They have been building 129 military bases day and night, unceasingly, since the early 1940's. Some of them were built even earlier than that. These bases are basically large cities underground connected by high-speed magneto-leviton trains that have speeds up to Mach 2. Several books have been written about this activity...

Stories tell of haunted places on U.S. bases American military powerless against screams, bumps, spirits in the night Stars and Stripes Pacific edition, Wednesday, October 31, 2007 It’s not your imagination — maybe that sound in the night really was a moan. Stories of spirits and unexplained phenomena have persisted on U.S. military bases in the Pacific for years. Doors slam, shadows creep and voices shout in the night. Could it be spirits of the dead reaching out? As costumed ghosts and ghouls hit the streets for Halloween, Stars and Stripes has compiled some accounts of allegedly real ghosts and...

NAPLES (Reuters) - Ecuador's leftist President Rafael Correa said Washington must let him open a military base in Miami if the United States wants to keep using an air base on Ecuador's Pacific coast. Correa has refused to renew Washington's lease on the Manta air base, set to expire in 2009. U.S. officials say it is vital for counter-narcotics surveillance operations on Pacific drug-running routes. "We'll renew the base on one condition: that they let us put a base in Miami -- an Ecuadorean base," Correa said in an interview during a trip to Italy. "If there's no problem having...

The U.S. Army is authorized to create civilian prison labor camps on military installations, according to a little-noticed regulation. The camps are allowed if the request comes from the Federal Bureau of Prisons or state corrections facilities under leasing requirements defined by federal law. WND's discovery of the regulation comes shortly after Bush administration directives expanding presidential powers during an emergency. The Army prison camp policy is defined in Army Regulation 210-35, entitled "Installations: Civilian Inmate Labor Camps," signed Feb. 14, 2005, by Sandra R. Riley, then-administrative assistant to the secretary of the Army. The regulation revises an earlier civilian...

Prague- The missile site that the United States wants to build in Europe, will be elsewhere than in the Czech Republic, acting PM Jiri Paroubek, chairman of Social Democrats (CSSD), said in an interview for today's issue of daily Pravo. He was replying to a question whether the CSSD would demand that the Civic Democrats (ODS), if they reached agreement with the CSSD on some kind of government cooperation, pledge to hold a referendum on the possible stationing of the site in the Czech Republic. Paroubek said that it is not necessary to insist on such demand since it is...

by Mark Finkelstein August 17, 2006 - 08:07 Hillary is on the air! There I was on the couch this morning in full pajamahadeen mode, searching for nuggests of MSM bias with which to titillate NB readers, when for the first time a Hillary campaign ad popped up. It's all pretty standard stuff. The theme is 'Standing Up': Hillary standing up for jobs, for military bases, for health care. As I type this, a freeze frame shows a nicely-coiffed Hillary in a striped pink shirt and sporting a single strand of pearls. On a desk in the background you can...

The Telegraph newspaper apparently cannot believe that America is gauche enough to take it upon itself to evaluate its own distribution of military forces in the world. How DARE the USA think that, in this era of unrest in the Mid East and terrorism, it can do what it wants to do with its own military! In an article by David Rennie titled American pullout leaves Iceland defenceless, America is reported as "tactless" for its need to reevaluate keeping forces in Iceland, forces that were originally posted there for fighting the Cold War. Apparently, many in Iceland, not to mention...

American military experts have arrived in the Czech Republic to examine potential sites for a new missile defence base. During a week-long mission they will inspect three training military grounds. The United States is said to be considering either the Czech Republic, Poland or Hungary for the base. Its purpose will be to shoot down long-range missiles before they reach their targets in the US or Europe. The visit of the 22 American experts is the last stage in two-year long talks between defence officials of both countries, the deputy spokesman of the Defence Ministry in Prague, Jan Pejsek, told...

American military experts have arrived in the Czech Republic to examine potential sites for a new missile defence base. During a week-long mission they will inspect three training military grounds. The United States is said to be considering either the Czech Republic, Poland or Hungary for the base. Its purpose will be to shoot down long-range missiles before they reach their targets in the US or Europe. The visit of the 22 American experts is the last stage in two-year long talks between defence officials of both countries, the deputy spokesman of the Defence Ministry in Prague, Jan Pejsek, told...

American Bases To Be Moved From Germany To Eastern Europe Sam Vaknin, Ph.D. - 7/10/2006 Invited by a grateful United States, the Czech Republic sent in February 2003 a representative to meet with Iraqi opposition in Kurdish north Iraq. The country was one of the eight signatories on a letter, co-signed by Britain, Italy, Spain and the two other European Union central European candidate-members, Poland and Hungary, in support of US policy in the Gulf. According to The Observer and the New York Times, American troops in Germany - and the billions of dollars in goods and services they consume...

A spat between American VoIP companies and the South Korean government has threatened to shut down a communications channel between U.S. soldiers and their families. The South Korean Ministry of Information and Communications, their rough equivalent to our FCC, is trying to block and shut down several VoIP services including AT&T CallVantage, Lingo, Skype and Vonage, according to a report published by the Stars and Stripes military newspaper. VoIP is often used by U.S. service members as an inexpensive way of communicating to their families back home. The Ministry of Information and Communications contends the VoIP companies have been running...

One of the first things George W. Bush did as his presidency was getting off the ground in 2001was to sign a bilateral trade agreement with Vietnam. Since then, trade between the US and Vietnam has grown 400 percent to $7.8 billion last year. Last week, the US and Vietnam signed an agreement that paves the way for Vietnam to join the WTO, the World Trade Organization. On Monday, June 5, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld was in Hanoi meeting Vietnam's Defense Minister Pham Van Tra and Prime Minister Phan Van Khai. Noting that a US Navy ship will soon...

Prime Minister John Howard said today he would warmly welcome the establishment of American military bases in northern Australia. The Financial Review reported that two joint Australia-United States bases, designed for military training and as forward camps, would be established at Bradshaw in the Northern Territory and Yampi Sound in Western Australia. Mr Howard did not confirm the details but said the government would welcome the American presence. "We made an announcement some time ago ... to the effect that we were going to expand the capacity for training and operations exercises ... in northern Australia for Americans," he said....

Foreign Policy's article the Six Most Important U.S. Military Bases lists: Andersen Air Force Base & Apra Harbor, Guam;Balad Air Base/Camp Anaconda, Iraq; Bezmer Air Base, Bulgaria;Diego Garcia, British Indian Ocean Territory;Guantánamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba;Manas Air Base, Kirgizstan as the most vital installations in the world. There may be disagreements about whether or not these should be the Top Six US bases worldwide, but the list serves to illustrate the geopolitical transformation that has taken place since 2000. Or more accurately, it reflects the current administration's perception of what the geopolitical map the early 21st century looks like. Not...

Kyrgyzstan warned the US yesterday that it was at risk of being evicted from its last military base in central Asia unless it agreed to a 100-fold increase in rental for aircraft landing and refuelling facilities at Manas, outside the capital Bishkek. Kurmanbek Bakiyev, the Kyrgyz president, said the US must pay $200m (€156m, £106m) a year, up from $2.7m, for the use of Manas, which was set up in 2001 as a launch pad for US-coalition forces operations to overthrow the Taliban in Afghanistan. He said there would be "no room for haggling" in the next round of talks...

The U.S. Air Force is surging ahead with plans to revitalize its bases on Guam from which to project power into the skies over the western Pacific and the islands and continent of Asia.Bombers are already stationed regularly at Andersen Air Force Base on rotation from the United States, as are aerial tankers essential to long range operations. A wing of 48 fighters is on the way. Perhaps most critical will be unmanned surveillance and intelligence aircraft known as Global Hawk that can remain on station for 24 hours at a range of 1200 miles from base.Reconstruction of runways from...

THOUSANDS of riot police today clashed with local residents, students and activists in South Korea opposed to plans to expand a key US military base. The violent clashes occurred when about 3000 police in full riot gear stormed a primary school compound, where hundreds of protesters opposed to the plan were holed up. The US-South Korean proposal outlines the relocation of dozens of US military bases in Seoul and the surrounding area to Camp Humphreys, in Pyongtaek, 70km south of Seoul. In the clashes protesters hurled rocks and wielded sticks to keep the police at bay, while dozens of civilians...

Tbilisi. April 27 (Prime-News) – Further expansion of NATO and affiliation of Georgia and the Ukraine will make Russia increase its military expenditures, Mikhail Kamynin, Spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia says. Russia has questions to NATO with regard to possible deployment of military bases in its new member states, in particular in Romania and Bulgaria, Mikhail Kamynin was quoted as saying by RIA Novotsi. "We hope that the alliance will observe its political and legal commitments in terms of military restraint when deciding on the deployment of the bases, and in particular the commitment not to...

    Bulgaria has agreed to open three military bases to permanent use by 2,500 U.S. troops who would be available for combat in the Middle East and other nearby regions. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will seal the deal when she visits the country this week.     Miss Rice, who leaves on a trip to the Balkans today, is expected to sign a broad defense-cooperation agreement with the new NATO ally that would authorize the stationing of foreign forces on its soil for the first time in its 1,325-year history, U.S. and Bulgarian officials said.     The final draft of the agreement, which...

The United States and Japan have struck a bargain over a plan to realign U.S. forces in Japan, with Japan agreeing to pay $6 billion of the $10 billion cost, the Japanese defense chief said Sunday night. Japanese Defense Minister Fukushiro Nukaga told reporters after his three-hour meeting with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld that Japan wanted to have an appropriate sharing of costs in transfering 8,000 Marines from Okinawa to the Pacific island of Guam. Nukaga said that both sides agreed that the Japan-U.S. alliance is important, not only for Japan but also for the region. The United States...

Two Atlanta-area men met with Islamic extremists in Toronto, where they discussed "strategic locations in the United States suitable for a terrorist strike," according to an FBI affidavit made public Friday. Syed Haris Ahmed and Ehsanul Islam Sadequee -- U.S. citizens from the Atlanta area -- met with at least three other targets of FBI terrorism investigations during a trip to Toronto last month, according to the affidavit. The affidavit said the men discussed attacks against oil refineries and military bases. They also planned to travel to Pakistan for military training at a terrorist camp, which authorities said the 21-year-old...

WASHINGTON, April 20, 2006 – The NBA and Toyota announced April 18 the launch of a 2006 Finals Trophy Tour to five military bases in the heartland of the U.S. The 2006 Finals Trophy Tour will visit Offutt Air Force Base, Neb., May 13; Fort Leavenworth, Kan., May 19; Fort Bliss, Texas, June 1; Fort Riley, Kan., June 24; and Fort Carson, Colo., July 3, according to an NBA news release. The tour was developed by Toyota and the NBA, in conjunction with the United Service Organizations, to thank the U.S. armed forces for their dedication and service. The customized...

WASHINGTON: The United States is planning to build at least six bases across the Middle East and Central Asia in the next 10 years for “deep storage” of munitions and equipment to prepare for regional war contingencies. According to William M Arkin, author of more than 10 books on military affairs, and a former US army intelligence analyst and nuclear weapons expert during the Cold War, the plan came to attention this month through contracting documents that call for the continued storage of everything from packaged meals ready to eat (MREs) to missiles in Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, and Oman, as...

Tbilisi: Georgian Deputy Defense Minister Mamuka Kudava said at a press conference on March 17 that the Russian side has submitted 2006 timetable and detail plan of withdrawal of military hardware and equipment from its two military bases in Georgia. He said that the process of pullout of Russian military bases from Georgia is still in progress, although the relevant agreement on “Terms of Temporary Functioning, Rules and Withdrawal of Russian Military Bases and Other Military Facilities of the Group of Russian Forces in Trans Caucasus (GRVZ) Stationed on the Territory of Georgia” has not been signed by the sides...

WASHINGTON, March 16, 2006 – The U.S. government has announced plans to remove its forces from Naval Air Station Keflavik, in Iceland, this fall, but reaffirmed its ongoing commitment to the island nation's security. U.S. Ambassador Carol van Voorst and U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns notified Icelandic Prime Minister Halldor Asgrimsson and Foreign Minister Geir H. Haarde of the decision yesterday, Terry Davidson, a State Department spokesman, confirmed. The State Department officials assured the Icelandic leaders the United States will continue to honor its agreement to provide Iceland's defense under the auspices of NATO and will work with the...

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060316/iceland_troops_060316/20060316?hub=World REYKJAVIK, Iceland — The United States, which has long provided Iceland with its only military force, has decided to withdraw most of its service members and all of its fighter jets and helicopters from the country later this year, the U.S. ambassador said Thursday. Iceland's government, which had recently offered to pay some of the cost of its defense to try to keep U.S. forces here, said it regretted the decision. In an interview with The Associated Press, U.S. Ambassador Carol van Voorst said she and Nicholas Burns, the U.S. under secretary of state, had told Prime Minister Haldor...

REYKJAVIK, Iceland — The United States, which has long provided Iceland with its only military force, has decided to withdraw most of its service members and all of its fighter jets and helicopters from the country later this year, the U.S. ambassador said Thursday. Iceland's government, which had recently offered to pay some of the cost of its defense to try to keep U.S. forces here, said it regretted the decision. In an interview with The Associated Press, U.S. Ambassador Carol van Voorst said she and Nicholas Burns, the U.S. under secretary of state, had told Prime Minister Haldor Asgrimsson...

The United States may want to keep a long-term military presence in Iraq to bolster moderates against extremists in the region and protect the flow of oil, the Army general overseeing U.S. military operations in Iraq said on Tuesday. Echoing Bush's statement on Monday on the outlook for reducing U.S. forces in Iraq, Abizaid said if Iraqis can form a unified government, "I think there's every reason to believe ... that we'll be able to bring the size of the force down much more so by December of '06." Abizaid cited the need to fight al Qaeda and other extremists...

Scare at the Sub Base GROTON -- Police and fire units have set up a perimeter at the Groton Sub Base. Bomb-sniffing dogs have been also called out to the scene. Navy authorities are providing very limited information as to what happened Monday morning. Crystal Lake Avenue and the military highway road along the river have been blocked off by local police. This provides access to Gate #1 where the incident involving a truck took place. A spokesperson for the sub base tells Eyewitness news that at 6:30 a.m. Monday a Navy dog trained to sniff for explosives sensed something...

Japanese city 'rejects US base' Residents of the Japanese city of Iwakuni have voted overwhelmingly against the expansion of a local US military base, according to exit polls. The vote is not binding on the Japanese government, but could put pressure on a deal already agreed between Tokyo and Washington, correspondents say. Officials said with nearly half the ballots counted, they were 7-1 against the plan. The redeployment is part of a project to reduce US military numbers in Japan. The US proposes relocating a naval air wing, or 57 planes and 1,600 personnel, to its base in Iwakuni, a...

TOKYO: Thousands of protesters gathered on Sunday on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa to rally against plans to relocate a US air base there, with reports saying the protesters numbered as many as 35,000. Holding placards demanding the immediate closure of the base and its relocation off the island, about 35,000 people took part in the rally in Ginowan, Kyodo News and public broadcaster NHK reported. “The city of Ginowan strongly demands that Futemma, the world’s most dangerous base, be shut down immediately and relocated outside of Japan,” Ginowan Mayor Yoichi Iha was quoted as saying in the Kyodo...

Football and pizza point to US staying for long haul By Oliver Poole at al-Asad airbase (Filed: 11/02/2006) The airbase at al-Asad is the biggest marine camp in western Anbar province. It is in the midst of the most rebellious region in Iraq, where thousands of insurgents have been killed in a series of operations over the past year. But get "inside the wire" and this stretch of desert increasingly resembles a slice of US suburbia rather than the front line in a war zone. Marines based in Iraq find time to watch the Super Bowl Its restaurants include a...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 10, 2006 – First lady Laura Bush thanked U.S. airmen at Aviano Air Base, Italy, today for their sacrifices as they and their fellow servicemembers defend the United States and help bring peace and stability to the world. Stopping at Aviano on her way to Turin as leader of the U.S. delegation to the 2006 Olympic Games, Bush and several former Olympians traveling with her told the airmen they're America's true heroes. "These athletes make America proud," she said this year's U.S. Olympians and the former Olympians who joined her, including speed skater Eric Heiden, skaters Dorothy Hamill...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 23, 2006 – Survey forms will go out in the mail this week to 10,000 servicemembers and Department of Defense civilian employees overseas to determine what they're looking for in radio programming provided by American Forces Network. The survey will help American Forces Radio and Television Service, AFN's parent organization, provide better radio programming of music, news and talk that lives up to its audience's desires, Warren Lee, AFRTS plans and operations officer, said in an interview. The goal, he said, is "to serve our overseas audience with the information and entertainment that they want and need to...

North Korea on Sunday issued a New Year's message demanding the withdrawal of U.S. troops from South Korea. The New Year's message didn't mention a word about the nuclear standoff with the United States. "The entire nation should firmly defend peace and security on the Korean Peninsula by turning out in the Struggle to resolutely foil the U.S. attempt to launch another war. We must remove the root cause of war completely from this land by launching a nationwide campaign for driving out the U.S. troops," said a joint editorial by North Korea's Rodong Sinmun and two other major state-run...

MOSCOW — Russia's foreign spy chief said military forces from other countries deployed at bases along Russia's periphery are a threat to the nation, a Russian news agency reported Monday. In comments that appeared directed at U.S. forces deployed on bases in former Soviet countries, the Interfax news agency quoted Sergei Lebedev, head of the Foreign Intelligence Service, as saying that Russia no longer had a "main adversary" as during the Cold War. But "Russians cannot help but be concerned about new military bases and military contingents being deployed around our country," he was quoted as saying. Russia has watched...

BUCHAREST, Romania | “It took them more than 60 years – but better late than never!” This is how 82-year-old Dimitrie Balus greeted the news that the United States would soon station troops permanently in Romania. The Transylvanian villager is one of the many Romanians who after World War II hoped for American troops to come and liberate their country from Russian occupation. Sixteen years after the collapse of the Soviet bloc and three years after former Warsaw Pact member Romania joined NATO, it’s official: the Americans are coming. NO MORE COLD WAR U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and...

RBC, 07.12.2005, Moscow 14:18:50.Russia sees no threat in the US-Romanian agreement concerning deployment of four military bases in Romania so far, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov told journalists today. He added that the defense ministry insiders had been aware that the decision was upcoming. However, they know nothing about the size of the bases. Ivanov said that conclusions would only be made after Russia had learned about the size of the bases.

Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov warned on Wednesday that Russia could reconsider its adherence to a key arms control treaty because of planned U.S. military deployments closer to its borders. Ivanov also shrugged off U.S. complaints against a deal to sell Russian air defense missiles to Iran, saying that it was in line with international law. Russia is closely following the planned deployment of U.S. troops to Romania and other former Soviet allies in Eastern Europe, Ivanov said. The government will react after getting detailed information about their strength and mission from Washington, he said. Ivanov warned that the reconfiguration of...

WASHINGTON — Maryland Christmas tree farmers are combining savvy marketing with a bit of holiday cheer this year by donating some of their Christmas trees to U.S. military bases.----

Rice signs US-Romania bases deal The deal marks a major shift in US strategy in Europe US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has signed a deal allowing the US to use military bases in Romania. It is the first such deal to be signed with a former communist country in eastern Europe. Ms Rice arrived in Romania from Germany, on the second leg of a European tour overshadowed by a controversy about CIA operations. She stressed that the US does not carry out or condone torture, but did not comment on alleged secret CIA prisons. She has defended the CIA...

United States to open military base in Romania 2005-12-06 21:09 By Radu Marinas BUCHAREST, Dec 6 (Reuters) - Romania and the United States signed a deal on Tuesday to open U.S. military bases in the former Soviet bloc country, naming an airfield entangled in controversy over alleged CIA jails in Europe as one location. The new bases are part of a shift in the Pentagon's focus from Cold War European facilities towards smaller bases closer to hot spots such as the Middle East. But the deal comes at a sensitive time for both Washington and Bucharest, following allegations that the...

Coming upon the recent news that the US Navy is pulling the plug on Naval Station Rota, the US Navy has just announced the withdrawal of forces from La Maddalena as Part of "Transformation." In a move to adjust its forces to meet current and future readiness needs in the European theater, the United States and Italy have decided to remove U.S. Navy forces from La Maddalena, Sardinia. In a carefully worded announcement, the US claims that "the capabilities provided by the installation are no longer required due to the realities of the new century’s security environment." A cynic might...

CAMP BONDSTEEL, Kosovo (Army News Service, Nov. 25, 2005) – For Soldiers of the 40th Infantry Division deployed as part of the Kosovo Forces 6B peacekeeping rotation, Thanksgiving Day provided not only an opportunity for rest and reflection, but also a chance to share one of their traditions with the people of Kosovo. While the mission went on as normal within the Multinational Brigade (East) area of responsibility – from patrolling city streets and rural towns, to providing medical check-ups in remote villages and conducting border and boundary patrols – Soldiers continued also fulfilled their role as peacekeepers in a...

Military officials flatly deny allegations of secret detentions MIHAIL KOGALNICEANU AIR BASE, Romania — In a weedy field on this wind-swept military base, Romanians in greasy combat fatigues tinker with unmanned drone aircraft near a ragged lineup of rusting MiG-29 fighter jets. There's not an American in sight, but the sprawling Soviet-era facility has become a key focus of a European investigation into allegations the CIA operated secret prisons. Top Romanian leaders and the Pentagon vehemently deny that the Mihail Kogalniceanu base in the country's southeast ever hosted a covert detention center, and the Romanians insist the United States never...

KABUL , Afghanistan, Nov. 23, 2005 —Senior Afghan National Police officers recently returned from a trip to the United States where they met with key leaders from the U.S. Army’s 10th Mountain Division and officers from several U.S. law enforcement agencies. "We have the policemen, now we need the systems that help police do their jobs," Afghan Brig. Gen. Sahki Baiani, Afghan National Police, Afghan Brig. Gen. Sahki Baiani, special advisor to the chief of the Afghan National Police (ANP), and Col. Wasim Azimi, chief of Operations for the Afghan Ministry of Interior, toured Fort Drum, N.Y., and local law...