Training the Satraps

https://www.upi.com/Defense-News/2019/10/14/Singapore-air-force-celebrates-10-years-of-training-at-Idaho-air-base/4981571077607/?sl=9

Few realise just how common this sort of this is and what an important role it plays for the US empire.

Hidden behind euphemisms of partnership, friendship and alliance the reality is these nations are beholden to the United States.

The ruling class of the subject nation reaps a great reward for their loyalty and the military reaps these rewards on a graded scale. Officers get the red carpet treatment and the enlisted men get to party.

The US government and power structures use these occasions to establish relationships. The Departments of State and Defense establish contacts. American defense contractors shake hands and open doors. These relationships make money and prepare the US for future wars. These token forces will at best play a small part. They can be used for diplomatic show as 'coalitions' are formed even though their actual combat roles would be minimal, even insignificant.

Militaries stage coups and the US has a long record of working with militaries to topple disobedient or unfriendly governments.

These arrangements which are misrepresented by the media (when covered at all) promote militarism and expand (via proxies and satraps) the footprint of the US Empire.

And of course these relationships can work the other way as well. Disloyal or disobedient nations can be cut off. They lose their access to the training and equipment necessary to keep the machine going. Spare parts are denied and invitations can be retracted. The bureaucracies within these nations will feel the pressure from both logistical planners and general officers. They will complain and destabilise the political system which is exactly what Washington wants.

If things get too bad, Washington has plenty of other tools in its toolbox, but these are basic low-cost, even profitable ventures that play no small role in the day to day operations of the Empire.