US opens new military testing facility in Saudi Arabia
The US military’s Central Command is working on plans to open a new testing facility in Saudi Arabia, according to reports.
Citing three unidentified US defence officials, it is reported that US will test new systems to counter unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), along with testing and developing integrated air and missile defence capabilities.
The report says the location has not been finalised, but US officials see Saudi Arabia as a good choice, due to its open terrain owned by the government, which would allow for testing of electronic warfare systems away from the public.
Central Command, or Centcom, which oversees all US military activity in the region, plans to call the facility the Red Sands Integrated Experimentation Center. The US maintains the White Sands Missile Range, a testing facility for extended-range missiles, in New Mexico.
US opens new military testing facility in Saudi Arabia
UAVs have emerged as a key security challenge for the US and its allies in the region. Iran has targeted US bases with drones sourced from cheap, commercially available components. Meanwhile, Iran-aligned proxies, such as Houthi rebels in Yemen, have used drones to target Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Last year, the top Centcom official warned that, because of the proliferation of UAVs, the US was operating without complete air superiority for the first time since the Korean war.
