Category Archives: Baseworld

U.S. basing in the Middle East

Posted on February 2, 2016 by understandingempire

David Vine, over at TomDispatch, writes about the 36 years of “disastrous” U.S. basing policy in the Middle East – beginning with the 1980 Carter doctrine of securing Middle Eastern oil and natural gas by “any means necessary, including military … Continue reading →

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An Empire of Bases and Special Forces: Garrisoning the Globe

Posted on January 8, 2016 by understandingempire

In what follows, I explore the U.S. military’s global basing and Special Forces strategy. The article updates a lot of my own previous writing on the U.S. military’s “Baseworld” or “Droneworld,” and gives fresh statistics on the number of U.S. … Continue reading →

Posted in Afghanistan, Africa, Baseworld, Camp Lemonnier, Chalmers Johnson, Empire, Nick Turse, Special Forces | Leave a comment

The U.S. Military’s Ongoing Securitization of Africa

Posted on January 6, 2016 by understandingempire

U.S. Marines simulate a riot during a crowd control training exercise with soldiers from Burkina Faso. Source. In what follows, I want to explore, and summarize, four articles–written by Nick Turse–that were released in 2015 about the U.S. military’s presence … Continue reading →

Posted in Africa, Baseworld, Drone Technology, JSOC, Special Forces, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Predator Empire, Dronification of State Violence – Open Access

Posted on June 12, 2014 by understandingempire

Two of my papers on drone warfare have been made freely available by the publisher: Ian Shaw and Majed Akhter, The Dronification of State Violence (2014). Geopolitics. Available here. This article explores the shifting methods of U.S. state violence. Building … Continue reading →

Posted in Baseworld, Biopolitics, Hannah Arendt, History of Drones | Leave a comment

Australia’s Pine Gap and the Global Kill-Net

Posted on April 30, 2014 by understandingempire

On the back of the “revelations” about the role of Ramstein Air Base, Germany, in the U.S.’ ongoing drone wars comes former Australian PM’s warning that Australians working at the U.S.-run Pine Gap facility could be liable for war crimes. … Continue reading →

Posted in Australia, Baseworld, NSA, Secrecy and Surveillance | Leave a comment

Australia spy facility pivotal to U.S. drone wars

Posted on August 5, 2013 by understandingempire

The Pine Gap spy base is a joint Australian-American signals intelligence base, located close to Ayers Rock. Its purpose is to track the “geolocation” of radio signals and mobile phones, with a focus on al-Qaida and Taliban leaders, although it … Continue reading →

Posted in Baseworld, Empire, Secrecy and Surveillance | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

The Changing Face of Empire

Posted on July 3, 2013 by understandingempire

Nick Turse (2012). The Changing Face of Empire: Special Ops, Drones, Spies, Proxy Fighters, Secret Bases, and Cyberwarfare. Chicago: Haymarket Books Geography and geographic imaginations play a pivotal role in the practice of inter-state violence. From “Clash of Civilization”-type territorial … Continue reading →

Posted in Baseworld, Book Reviews, CIA, Empire, Nick Turse, Special Forces | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

U.S. Drone bases in Africa mapped

Posted on February 28, 2013 by understandingempire

Public Intelligence have constructed a map illustrating the various U.S. drone sites scattered across the African continent. A wonderful snapshot, the map is a real eye-opener, and demonstrates how quickly unmanned surveillance has spread to North and West Africa from the “Af-Pak” … Continue reading →

Posted in Africa, Baseworld | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Confirmed: U.S. troops to construct drone base in Niger

Posted on February 25, 2013 by understandingempire

The U.S. currently operates a medium-sized drone base in Djibouti at Camp Lemonnier, where joint Special Forces and CIA strike teams target al-Qaeda affiliates in Yemen and Somalia. This AFRICOM “footprint” is set to spread to Niger, with the construction … Continue reading →

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Confirmed: Saudi Arabia hosts U.S. drone base

Posted on February 7, 2013 by understandingempire

In news that isn’t really “news”, a number of media outlets are confirming what most already knew, that Saudi Arabia is hosting a U.S. drone base. The September 2011 strike against Anwar al-Awlaki in Yemen – a U.S. al-Qaeda cleric … Continue reading →

Posted in Baseworld, Middle East | Tagged , , | Leave a comment