UAE's Battle-Hardened Military Expands Into Africa, Mideast by Jon Gambrell, Associated Press

The United Arab Emirates is better known for its skyscrapers and pampered luxuries, but its small size belies a quiet expansion of its battle-hardened military into Africa and elsewhere in the Middle East.

The seven-state federation ranks as one of Washington's most prominent Arab allies in the fight against the Islamic State group, hosting some 5,000 American military personnel, fighter jets and drones. But the practice gunfire echoing through the deserts near bases outside of Dubai and recent military demonstrations in the capital of Abu Dhabi show a country increasingly willing to flex its own muscle amid its suspicions about Iran.

Already, the UAE has landed expeditionary forces in Afghanistan and Yemen. Its new overseas bases on the African continent show this country, which U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis calls "Little Sparta," has even larger ambitions.

The UAE, a federation of seven sheikhdoms, only became a country in 1971. It had been a British protectorate for decades and several of the emirates had their own security forces. The forces merged together into a national military force that took part in the 1991 U.S.-led Gulf War that expelled Iraqi forces occupying Kuwait.

The UAE sent troops to Kosovo as part of the NATO-led peacekeeping mission there starting in 1999, giving its forces valuable experience working alongside Western allies in the field. Following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, it deployed special forces troops in Afghanistan to support the U.S.-led war against the Taliban. Emirati personnel there combined aid with Arab hospitality, working on infrastructure projects in villages and meeting with local elders.

Today, the UAE hosts Western forces at its military bases, including American and French troops. Jebel Ali port in Dubai serves as the biggest port of call for the American Navy outside of the United States.

The UAE decided in recent years to grow its military, in part over concerns about Iran's resurgence in the region following the nuclear deal with world powers and the Islamic Republic's involvement in the wars in Syria and Yemen…

Read on.

Marines Take Over Advising Mission In Helmand by E. B. Boyd, Stars & Stripes

For the first time since the drawdown of U.S. troops in Afghanistan in late 2014, U.S. Marines returned to Helmand province en masse Saturday as the 300-person Task Force Southwest took over the training and advising mission there.

Unlike its Marine predecessors in the region, Task Force Southwest is not a combat unit. It’s an advisory team made up of troops from different units.

The transition of authority is a routine changeover that does not change the overall number of U.S. forces in Afghanistan. Task Force Southwest is replacing a slightly smaller Army unit called Task Force Forge, which deployed to Helmand last year.

“We are excited to be back in Helmand, and we’re pleased to assume this mission,” said Task Force Southwest commander Brig. Gen. Roger Turner Jr. at the transfer-of-authority ceremony at Camp Shorab. Camp Shorab stands on land previously occupied by Camp Bastion, which was dismantled and vacated by NATO forces during the 2014 troop drawdown.

The transfer of authority Saturday comes as Afghan forces across the country are struggling to hold off the Taliban. In the intervening two years, the group has made key gains in strategically important provinces like Helmand, including taking over large parts of Sangin district, where many Marines died during the surge of 2009-2010.

Two key coalition goals this year are to prevent Afghan forces from letting any provinces fall completely into insurgent hands and to stem the overall loss of territory.

Helmand is a prime focus of the Taliban. It lies along key smuggling routes, and its poppy fields put money into the group’s coffers…

Read on.