Nations jostle for global influence in Djibouti

Saudi Arabia is to gain a foothold in the Horn of Africa with a military base in Djibouti to bolster its regional security role. Already home to U.S. and French military facilities, Djibouti will also soon host China’s first overseas base

DJIBOUTI BASES

U.S.: Camp Lemmonier, Only permanent U.S. military base in Africa. 4,000 personnel conduct anti-terror operations against al-Qaeda in Yemen and al-Shabaab in Somalia. Facilities include drone ports

China: Logistics supply facility with capacity to house 10,000 troops. Due to open this year

France: Largest French military base in Africa, with around 1,700 personnel

United Arab Emirates: Key ally in Saudi campaign in Yemen, operates military base in Assab, Eritrea, and plans another in Berbera, in Somalia’s self governing region of Somaliland

Saudi Arabia: Closer ties with Djibouti part of newly assertive policy of countering Iranian proxies in Arab world from Syria to Yemen. Riyadh is leading coalition fighting Houthi rebels in Yemen

Djibouti also hosts Japan’s only overseas base, plus Spanish and German troops from EU anti-piracy force 

Areas of control
Houthi rebels
al-Qaeda
al-Shabaab

Strait of Bab el-Mandeb

Saudi F-15

Aden
Gulf of Aden
INDIAN OCEAN
Red Sea
DJIBOUTI
Djibouti
SAUDI ARABIA
Mogadishu
ETHIOPIA
ERITREA
Asmara
YEMEN
Sanaa
SOMALIA
Assab
Berbera
SOMALILAND

125 miles
200km

Sources: Risk Intelligence, Stratfor, BBC