Why Qatar is building a training facility at a US military base

Qatar’s defense minister, Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani (L) and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth (Image: Reuters)

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho will host a training facility from the Qatari air force. The base, which is still under American control, will allow pilots from Qatar to train on the F-15 Fighter planes purchased back from America. The deal follows the long tradition of American forces training a foreign army, despite the move initially sparking social media outrage due to fears of a "foreign base" inside America, according to the Washington Post.

Why Qatar chose Idaho

Qatar is a small country, so extensive training with big-scale activities is challenging, particularly with activities such as live-fire exercises. Mountain Home's desert plateau is comparable to Qatar's wide open desert landscape, providing a comparable training situation. The State Department approved the 2016 purchase of F-15s by Qatar, and training in America was a point of negotiation. The pilots will train under the American 366th Fighter Wing with complete American control.

Additional foreign forces training in the US

Qatar is not singular. German pilots have been training in America since 1958 and have a Texas-based tactical headquarters. Scores of Singaporeans also live at Mountain Home and practice on F-15s. Singapore's presence was augmented in 2018 with new facilities. NATO partners like Britain and the Netherlands have been training in America for generations. But such arrangements have been a source of controversy at times, most recently in 2019 when a Saudi trainee killed three Americans at a Florida base.

US foreign policy

Just as American forces are trained in the United States, the US deploys over 130,000 military personnel abroad, with bases in Japan, Germany, South Korea, Italy and the UK. In Qatar, the al-Udeid Air Base is home to some 13,000 American troops and was a key staging point for wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria. The Idaho agreement is a mutually-based framework where partners mutually share facilities with a view to reinforcing defence cooperation.

The wider impact

The training facility solidifies US-Qatari military relationships despite growing tension in the region. Even as critics worry about bases on foreign American soil, the program is under American control and is in line with long-standing arrangements with other partners. The agreement provides Qatar with a crucial training capability that is not available back home. For Washington, it supports defence arrangements that disperse American influence and have partners develop capabilities for modern fight missions.