As millions of Americans gather together with loved ones to celebrate the Christmas holiday and ring in the new year, hundreds of thousands of American men and women in uniform will mark the holidays away from family in decidedly less festive corners of the world.
As of June, 165,830 U.S. service members were on deployment across the Middle East, Indo-Pacific region and Europe. That figure has likely ticked higher amid recent unrest across the Middle East, and it doesn’t include service members working at U.S. bases over the holidays and civilian personnel on overseas contracts.
Here’s a look at where service members will spend the holidays on deployment across the world:
Around 43,000 troops are stationed across the Middle East as of October, an increase from the usual 34,000 amid the recent unrest and outbreak of war between Israel and Iranian proxy forces Hamas and Hezbollah.
The Pentagon announced in October it would be moving troops into Cyprus to prepare for escalating unrest in Lebanon. And last week the Pentagon divulged that some 2,100 troops were in Syria — not the 900 they had long claimed. Another 1,000 troops are in Iraq carrying out missions to thwart ISIS.
U.S. forces are stationed across Europe to support NATO forces and deter any potential Russian aggression.
Major areas of deployment include Germany (34,894), Italy (12,319) and the United Kingdom (10,180).
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U.S. forces partner with allies in Asia to conduct joint exercises and coordinate on countering the threat of China and
Areas of deployment include South Korea (23,732), Japan (52,852) and Guam (6,453).
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Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin thanked U.S. troops for serving over the holiday season in a Christmas message.
"We know firsthand the holidays can be especially hard if you're far away from your loved ones. So for our troops stationed around the globe, we deeply appreciate your sacrifice," he said. "We know that your families serve too, and our military families are the foundation of America's strength."
