Don Bacon recently informed me that in addition to various headquarters, logistical facilities and rotating air units throughout the Gulf area, the US Army continues to maintain two ground combat brigades in Kuwait, presumebly at Camps Arfijan and Buehring. I was unaware of this.
After the First Gulf War, Kuwait proposed such a garrison arrangement to the United States. At the time I was in favor of this because Iraq remained a malevolent presence just to the north.
The situation is quite different now. There is no real ground threat to Kuwait. Iraq is not a threat and the notion that Iran might overrun southern Iraq to suddenly appear on Kuwait's border is so fanciful as to be unavailable as a justification for the continuing rotating deployments.
The unite presentoy deployed seem to be an armored brigade of the 4th Division and an additional brigade from the 34th USARNG division.
Presumably, Kuwait is paying the expenses involved in maintaining these troops in their country, but the mere presence of these ground combat units cannot be justified on the basis of Kuwait's desire to have an "insurance policy." The commander of one of the brigades recently said that his unit was in the ME to participate in various "exercizes' and to assist in training regional forces. Really? Where and when"?
IMO the two brigades are there at Kuawiti expense to act as a rescue posse for the embassy in Baghded if the need should arise. pl