Qatar to build air force facility on U.S. base in Idaho
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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth (R) and Qatari Defense Minister Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani at the Pentagon. Photo: Alex Wroblewski/AFP via Getty
Qatar will build an Air Force facility at Idaho's Mountain Home Airbase to host its F-15 jets and train pilots, the U.S. and Qatar jointly announced on Friday.
Why it matters: This is another signal of the deepening U.S.-Qatar relationship. Earlier this month, the Trump administration extended Qatar an unprecedented security guarantee.
Reality check: This won't be a military base like the ones the U.S. has in Qatar and around the world.
- Laura Loomer and other MAGA figures expressed shock and outrage after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced the forthcoming "Qatari Emiri Air Force facility" on Friday morning, alongside his Qatari counterpart.
- But the facility Qatar is building will be within a U.S. air base and under U.S. jurisdiction, a source familiar with the agreement told Axios. The deal was also several years in the making, with discussions dating back to the Biden administration.
- Mountain Home Airbase already hosts Singapore's F-15s, and pilots from dozens of countries receive training on U.S. soil.
However, the deal Hegseth announced on Friday is unusual in that Qatar will be constructing a new air force facility from the ground up.
- Even close U.S. allies typically don't have such military facilities in the U.S.
- The Pentagon did not respond to questions about the nature of the agreement.
The big picture: Qatar placed a $12 billion order for 36 advanced F-15 fighter jets in 2017.
- But Qater has significant airspace limitations when it comes to training pilots, both because of its small size and because it's mostly flat desert terrain, the source said.
- The desire to train pilots in different landscapes and weather conditions led to the conversations about a site in the U.S., the source said.
- The deal was going to be announced during Trump's trip to Doha in May but negotiations with contractors were still ongoing, the source said. The negotiations still aren't finalized but the Qataris decided to make the announcement on Friday anyways.
What they're saying: "This will not be a Qatari air base. Rather, Qatar has made an initial 10-year commitment to construct and maintain a dedicated facility within an existing U.S. air base, intended for advanced training and to enhance interoperability in defending and advancing our shared interests around the world," Ali Al-Ansari, Qatar's media attaché to the U.S. told Axios.
- Al-Ansari added the arrangement is "similar to existing programs" between the U.S. and several of its international allies.
- "It represents a continued expression of the strong defense partnership between Qatar and the U.S. and the project will lead to wide-ranging benefits including the creation of hundreds of jobs for Americans during both the construction and maintenance phases," he said.
Go deeper: U.S. security guarantee for Qatar sparks jealousy and confusion
Editor's note: This story has been updated with a statement from Qatar's media attaché.
