Notes sur les bases et les effectifs militaires états-uniens à l'étranger

This paper, mainly methodological, aims at providing an estimation of the number of U.S. military bases and personnel worldwide. The first part proposes a periodization of the spread of U.S. military bases. The second part exposes the official statistical data disseminated by the US Department of Defense. The third part analyzes in a critical way the main limitations of these data, and suggests some revisions. The fourth and last part gives a brief outline on networks of military bases on the northern countries which are strategic allies of the United States.