For years, the Navy has managed its Middle East fleet operations out of Naval Support Activity Bahrain. Iranian forces began targeting the base after U.S. and Israeli forces launched strikes on Iran on Feb. 28.
"They blew the hell out of Bahrain," acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao said in an interview with The Epoch Times on Sept. 9, as he concluded a visit to a shipyard in Philadelphia.
While open-source imagery had previously indicated the Bahrain naval base sustained damage, Cao's comment marked a direct and official acknowledgement of the ongoing conflict's impact on the facility.
Last month, following reports that the crew of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln were facing strains after months supporting combat operations in the Middle East, the Navy told The Epoch Times that combat actions had disrupted traditional supply hubs in the region. Despite these disruptions, the service said the Lincoln's crew maintained continuous access to clean water, healthy meal options, and functional air conditioning.
At a Navy town hall event on Aug. 31, a sailor who had been displaced from NSA Bahrain asked Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Daryl Caudle whether she would see the return of personal belongings she left on the base. Caudle said the service was working on a plan to reunite personnel with their belongings but said the service doesn't plan to return to the base "anytime soon."
When asked whether the Navy would need to repair NSA Bahrain in order to sustain its forces in the region, Cao said, "I have a task force that's looking at that."
The Iran conflict has fueled discussion over the continued utility of U.S. military outposts in the region.
Jim Webb, a U.S. Marine infantry veteran and independent national security consultant, said Cao's latest comments suggest that the current U.S. force posture in the Middle East "is unsustainable without continuing to be under attack."
When asked whether the Navy would need to repair NSA Bahrain in order to sustain its forces in the region, Cao said, "I have a task force that's looking at that."
The Iran conflict has fueled discussion over the continued utility of U.S. military outposts in the region.
Jim Webb, a U.S. Marine infantry veteran and independent national security consultant, said Cao's latest comments suggest that the current U.S. force posture in the Middle East "is unsustainable without continuing to be under attack."
"I don't think there's any way, you know, in the short, medium, or potentially even long term, that we can adequately defend a place like NSA Bahrain, or let alone the rest of the logistics bases there," Webb told The Epoch Times.
Webb said keeping U.S. troops at bases in the region makes those troops "constant targets."
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