A cooperative security location (CSL) is a
U.S. military
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...
term for facilities used for regional training in
counterterrorism
Counterterrorism (also spelled counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, incorporates the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that Government, governments, law enforcement, business, and Intelligence agency, intellig ...
and interdiction of
drug trafficking
A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via insuffla ...
, and also to provide contingency access to continental areas.
"A CSL is a host-nation facility with little or no permanent U.S. personnel presence, which may contain equipment and/or logistical arrangements and serve for security cooperation activities and contingency access."
These sites were established as
the Pentagon began to address regional threats primarily in
Africa and
Latin America following its 2004 global posture review.
They are sometimes referred to as "
lily pad
Nymphaeaceae () is a family of flowering plants, commonly called water lilies. They live as rhizomatous aquatic herbs in Temperate climate, temperate and tropical climates around the world. The family contains nine genera with about 70 know ...
s".
The establishment of such bases accelerated under the Obama administration, especially with the
pivot to the Asia-Pacific region and increased operations in Africa. A CSL is not a
forward operating site (FOS) with a small permanent force or contractor personnel or a
main operating base (MOB), with a large force and a well-defended site. Canada has established
operational support hubs that operate in a similar fashion and can be reached by Canada's fleet of C-17 cargo aircraft.
[Berthiaume, Lee]
"New military outposts key to more overseas missions"
''Postmedia Network'', 19 July 2012.
Latin American and Caribbean CSLs
In 2004, the United States began consideration of four sites for CSLs in the Latin American region:
*
Manta Air Base
Eloy Alfaro International Airport is a combination civilian airport and military air base on the Pacific coast near Manta, a city in the Manabí Province of Ecuador. The airport, also known as Eloy Alfaro Air Base, is named in honor of Eloy Alfa ...
,
Ecuador
*
Comalapa,
El Salvador
El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south b ...
African CSLs
These sites were created while Africa was in the region covered by United States European Command. With the creation of the United States Africa Command (USAFRICOM) in 2007, these CSL locations in Africa were transferred to the new command.
They include, but are not limited to:
* Dakar, Senegal
* Entebbe International Airport, Entebbe, Uganda
* Libreville, Gabon
References
{{reflist
Military installations
Military installations of the United States