The U.S. could see its presence in the fight against the Islamic State expanding with a string of military bases across Africa and the Middle East under a new Pentagon plan, according to a report.
The plan would aim to combat the Islamic State using hubs from which special operations troops could collect intelligence and carry out strikes. The New York Times reported that former Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey presented the plan to the White House this fall before retiring.
Defense Secretary Ash Carter touched on the plan in October when he received the Woodrow Wilson Award. He said the new strategy will use infrastructure the military already has in Afghanistan, other parts of the Middle East, East Africa and Southern Europe.
“Because we cannot predict the future, these regional nodes — from Morón, Spain, to Jalalabad, Afghanistan, — will provide forward presence to respond to a range of crises, terrorist and other kinds. These will enable unilateral crisis response, counter-terror operations, or strikes on high-value targets,” Carter said.
Officials said the plan would cost in the “low millions of dollars” to cover personnel, equipment and some base improvements, according to the New York Times report.
The Pentagon already has much of the infrastructure needed for major hubs in Afghanistan, the Middle East and Djibouti in the Horn of Africa. The plan would link the hubs to fight the Islamic State in a regionally-focused strategy, rather than striking out from a particular country, the Times reported.
The plan has met some resistance from the State Department, where diplomats have long warned about the creeping militarization of America’s foreign policy, the paper said.
