French Vice Admiral Jacques Mazars, who heads the project, said the base would include members of the French navy, army and air force.

Outside of Iraq, the United States has about 40,000 U.S. troops on bases across the Gulf – including the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet headquarters in Bahrain. The British military also has a small presence in the Gulf. The Royal Air Force operates out of Al Udeid, a U.S. air force base in Qatar, and the military is part of the coalition naval task force based in Bahrain.