[Peace-discuss] more expansion

[Dlind49 at aol.com]

U.S. Military Grows in Djibouti
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS


Filed at 1:30 a.m. ET


DJIBOUTI (AP) -- Several dozen American soldiers raise a big green tent and 
shuffle it across the sand, making room for yet more equipment at a new U.S. 
military base that is growing larger by the day in this small but 
strategically located country in the Horn of Africa.

While their colleagues rearrange their living quarters, other soldiers in 
sunglasses and floppy hats keep watch at the entrance to Camp Le Monier from 
a machine gun-mounted Humvee.

The five-month-old U.S. base in this former French colony just miles across 
the Red Sea from Yemen and within striking distance of Iraq is no longer a 
secret. But finding out what the Americans are up to is another matter.

``Since the beginning of the global war on terrorism, the U.S. Central 
Command has maintained a military presence in various countries within its 
area of responsibility in order to train for and respond to a variety of 
potential operations,'' said Capt. David Connolly, an Army spokesman flown in 
hastily from a U.S. base in the Persian Gulf nation of Qatar to deal with 
inquisitive reporters.

``Our forces in Djibouti and Camp Le Monier are providing limited support to 
other U.S. forces in the region,'' he said.

That's all: no news and no access.

ABC first reported two weeks ago that American commandos were in Djibouti, 
raising speculation they were preparing to pursue al-Qaida suspects in Yemen.

But the Pentagon acknowledged only that it had sent 800 soldiers, including 
special forces, to the new base.

Nothing was said about the 1,500 Marines training at Obock, 30 miles north of 
Djibouti town across the Gulf of Tadjoura.

Djiboutian officials have denied their country will serve as a base for any 
action in Yemen, a country with which it has historic economic and cultural 
ties.

``If we give some facilities to our friends, Americans or French, to use our 
climate conditions for conditioning their troops, that doesn't mean it's for 
a specific operation,'' President Ismail Omar Guelleh told The Associated 
Press. ``This is normal bilateral relations with those superpowers.''

He added that if U.S. troops were headed for Yemen, they could operate from 
their own ships that patrol the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait that 
separate the two countries.

Djibouti's acting foreign minister, Mahamoud Ali, said American troops have 
been conducting large-scale exercises involving ground troops, helicopters, 
boats and AC-130 planes fitted with air-to-surface missiles.

Giant U.S. Air Force cargo planes swoop in and out of Djibouti's small 
airport every day as camouflaged MH-53 helicopters with the word ``Marines'' 
barely visible on their shells ferry men and equipment to and from Le Monier.

Djiboutians say terrified sheep and goats tumble into ravines running from 
the roar of the helicopters sweeping overhead.

The rugged, hostile terrain of Djibouti, coupled with humidity and high 
temperatures, make it an ideal place for training troops in extreme 
conditions. Much of the Massachusetts-sized country of 740,000 people is 
uninhabited.

France first used Djibouti as a fueling station in the 19th century for 
coal-powered ships headed for the Indian Ocean, Indochina and the South 
Pacific. It became a haven for gun runners and pearl divers and later 
France's largest overseas military base. France still maintains 2,850 
military personnel in Djibouti 25 years after independence

Foreign Legionnaires in tight khaki shorts and white ``kepi'' caps amble 
through town when they're not out on grueling exercises. French soldiers with 
shaved heads and tattoos pack the bars and restaurants at night. They're 
often joined by some of the 1,000 German soldiers who have been in Djibouti 
since January as part of the U.S.-led war on terrorism. The Americans seem to 
stay home at night.

During the day the lobby of the Djibouti Sheraton looks like a military 
operations center as uniformed Germans mingle among plainclothes American 
security officials, pistols strapped to their sides.

For Djibouti, a sleepy Muslim nation that lives off port fees, base rentals 
and foreign aid, the burgeoning military presence is good business.

Djiboutian and U.S. officials are discussing a $10 million to $12 million aid 
package while street vendors push fake designer watches, sunglasses and 
cigarette lighters.

Americans in civilian clothes wander through the market in the afternoon, but 
vendor Ali Samatar says they're not big shoppers.

``They don't trust people here; they don't trust Muslims ... they say they 
will buy something when they leave,'' he said with a shrug.