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Bahrain Organization and Equipment
The principal units of the UDF in 1993 were one
mechanized
infantry brigade, one armored brigade, two infantry
brigades, one
artillery brigade, and the Royal Guard, organized along
brigade
lines. The Central Military Command of Dubayy supplies one
infantry brigade. Major weapons include French AMX-30 main
battle
tanks, of which an additional twenty-five tanks are on
order. The
Central Military Command separately purchased Italian
OF-40 Mk 2
Lion tanks. French armor predominates throughout the army;
it
includes reconnaissance vehicles, infantry fighting
vehicles,
APCs, and 155mm self-propelled howitzers (see
table 41,
Appendix). Negotiations were reportedly under way in 1992
for the
purchase of 337 M1A1 tanks from the United States. The UAE
also
has a variety of older British armored vehicles, many of
them in
storage, as well as Brazilian APCs. The army's antitank
guided
wire missiles include twenty-five TOWs from the United
States,
some of them mounted on Urutu chassis, as well as French
Milan
and HOT and the older British Vigilant systems. Because of
difficulties of coordination between air- and ground-based
defenses, the operation of air defense missiles was
shifted to
the air force in 1988. The army's tactical air defense is
limited
to 20mm and 30mm guns.
The most powerful units of the UDF navy are two Lürssen
corvettes delivered by Germany in 1991, similar to those
of the
Bahraini navy. The corvettes are supplemented by
fast-attack
craft and large patrol boats.
The air force is organized into two fighter-ground
attack
squadrons, one air defense squadron, and one
counterinsurgency
squadron. The fighter-ground attack squadrons are equipped
with
Mirage IIIs and British Hawks, the latter with a combined
attack
and training role. The fighter squadron is composed of
Mirage 5s
and Mirage 2000s. The counterinsurgency squadron is
equipped with
the Italian Aermacchi. In addition, the air force has four
early
warning aircraft. A number of French helicopters are armed
with
Exocet, HOT, and other air-to-ground missiles. In 1991 the
United
States agreed to the sale of twenty Apache attack
helicopters
after the administration overcame objections in Congress
by
pointing out that the helicopters were needed to defend
the UAE's
oil platforms in the gulf and to enable the UAE to
contribute
more effectively to the deterrence of aggression by Iraq.
The existing air defense system is based on one air
defense
brigade organized into thirteen batteries armed with
Rapier,
Crotale, and RBS-70 SAMs. Five batteries of improved Hawk
missiles were being formed in 1992, with training provided
by the
United States.
Data as of January 1993
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