In August 1983, DOD established a joint task force called Joint Task Force-Bravo (JTF-B) of about 1,100 Army and Air Force personnel at Soto Cano (formerly, Palmerola Air Base), the Honduran military installation that houses the Honduran Air Force Academy. The presence was established to support various U.S. political and military objectives that demonstrated U.S. commitment to its allies against the increasing communist threat in the region. JTF-B and the other U.S. military units at Soto Cano were assigned missions to coordinate and support U.S. counterinsurgency and intelligence operations, and military training exercises in the region. When directed, JTF-B provides support for disaster relief, search and rescue, and contingency-type missions in Central America. JTF-B was established as a subordinate unit of the U.S. Southern Command (USSOUTHCOM), headquartered in Panama. The United States funded construction projects and infrastructure upgrades at Soto Cano, such as a F-16 capable runway, semipermanent barracks, offices and recreational facilities, 22 miles of roads, and upgrades of the water, sewer, and electrical systems. The annual cost for the United States to maintain the U.S. military presence at Soto Cano has grown steadily from about $24 million annually in the mid-1980s to a projected $38 million for 1994. (See table 1 for a breakdown of the costs.) Since 1991, the average annual cost of new construction and upgrades has been about $2.5 million. U.S. operations at Soto Cano are funded from the Army’s and the Air Force’s Operations and Maintenance accounts. In addition to JTF-B, other U.S. military units are stationed at Soto Cano to support JTF-B’s missions, such as an aviation battalion and a military police platoon. About two-thirds of the U.S. military personnel assigned to Soto Cano are on temporary duty, usually from 4 to 6 months. The remainder serve a 1-year tour. In April 1994, authorized U.S. military personnel at Soto Cano was reduced to 780 (see app. I). At the time of our fieldwork, DOD officials told us that the level of personnel was scheduled to increase to about 900 in October 1994 due to the relocation of helicopter personnel and three helicopters stationed in Panama. DOD officials informed us that this move was being made to keep aircraft assets in the theater due to the drawdown of U.S. forces in Panama. However, during discussions on a draft of this report, DOD officials told us that the level is now scheduled to decrease to about 500 personnel in October 1995 due to the deactivation of a helicopter battalion, which will reduce the number of helicopters from 31 to 11. In addition, all U.S. aviation operations and support at Soto Cano will be consolidated with JTF-B facilities, and the current main air facility, Camp Pickett, will be closed. According to DOD documents, the U.S. military presence at Soto Cano contributes about $14 million annually to the Honduran economy in the form of contracts and services to support the U.S. military presence. This includes the U.S. military personnel estimated spending on the Honduran local economy. With the resolution of military conflicts and greater political stability in Central America, the focus of U.S. interest in the region has shifted from political/military objectives to economic growth and democracy building. The U.S. government officials we met with said that the continuing U.S. military presence contributed to U.S. democracy objectives, but that the contribution was incidental to their presence to perform other missions. Since 1990, Central America has experienced new political stability as the conflicts in El Salvador and Nicaragua have been resolved, and the overall threat of communist expansion has diminished. As a result, U.S.-directed counterinsurgency and intelligence activities have ended. The changed political condition from the time that JTF-B was established is reflected in the April 1994 congressional testimony of the Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs. The Assistant Secretary stated “the United States is no longer compelled to base foreign policy strategy on defending the United States and its neighbors from external aggression. Instead, foreign policy can now be focused on encouraging democracy and promoting economic growth.” When questioned about the continuing need for a military presence in light of new U.S. goals and the relative stability in the region, military officials at Soto Cano and the Southern Command said that the military presence at Soto Cano contributes to U.S. efforts to promote democracy. According to these officials, the military personnel at Soto Cano serve as an example of a military force that is subordinate to civilian control, a main tenet of democracy. However, the officials stated that the influence exerted by the U.S. military at Soto Cano was incidental and difficult to quantify. According to State Department officials, the principal U.S. programs to promote democratic initiatives and military professionalism are administered by other U.S. agencies such as the State Department, the Agency for International Development, the Department of Justice, and the Defense Security Assistance Agency. Further, the continuing U.S. military presence at Soto Cano appears inconsistent with the current goal of the U.S. Embassy in Honduras—which is to reduce the overall size and scope of U.S. activities in Honduras in recognition of declining U.S. funding and increased political stability in the region. Moreover, the United States is also encouraging the government of Honduras to implement military reforms, which include reducing its armed forces. Since the end of the Cold War, the primary missions of JTF-B are to support joint, combined and interagency operations, and provide logistical support for military training exercises, and to maintain and operate an all-weather, C-5 capable airfield. While the U.S. military presence at Soto Cano is useful and convenient, it is not essential to support military training activities in the region. U.S. military personnel are routinely deployed throughout Latin America for training missions without a dedicated, semipermanent U.S. logistics and support base like Soto Cano. According to DOD records, in 1993 over 60,000 U.S. active and reserve military personnel were deployed from the United States and other locations to conduct a variety of training and civic assistance activities throughout Latin America. About 5,500 of the 60,000 participated in training activities conducted in Honduras. In discussions on a draft of this report, DOD officials provided us with figures for fiscal year 1994 training. These figures show that JTF-B provided support to 10,665 personnel, which is 89 percent of the total deployed in Central America. However, the types and levels of support provided by JTF-B to the various training exercises were not available. According to DOD officials, the number of personnel trained in Central America is approximately 17 percent of all personnel deployed from the United States and other locations to Latin America. Training activities conducted in Latin America included engineering exercises to drill wells, build roads, schools, and medical clinics; medical exercises to provide basic medical, dental, and veterinary care; and combined exercises with host nation forces, such as computer-simulated war exercises and counterterrorist training. JTF-B and the other U.S. military units stationed at Soto Cano provide support to these types of training exercises conducted in Honduras. For example, in support of an engineering exercise conducted in Honduras in 1993, U.S. military personnel at Soto Cano performed liaison functions with Honduran military and local government assisted U.S. reserve units in awarding contracts to procure services and supplies on the local economy, and transported and accompanied advance teams to identify suitable locations for base camps and inspected training sites during the exercise. The U.S. military at Soto Cano also often provides limited support (such as supplies and communication support) to training exercises in Belize, Guatemala, and El Salvador. For example, military personnel at Soto Cano provided and transported tents to a National Guard training site in Guatemala when the Guard’s shipment of tents was delayed. Currently, assets from Soto Cano are being used to support demining training under the operational control of the U.S. Military Group (USMILGP) in Honduras for Brazilian, Costa Rican, and Honduran troops. JTF-B also recently provided assistance to the USMILGP in El Salvador in the coordination of air operations for the Fuertes Caminos exercise. Officials from the U.S. Army Reserve and National Guard said that the support they receive from U.S. military forces at Soto Cano makes training more convenient but that the training can be accomplished without a U.S. military presence. Since 1992, the Army National Guard and Army Reserve have increased their training deployments to other Central American countries, especially El Salvador and Guatemala. In these countries, intergovernmental coordination for logistical support is provided by U.S. military personnel attached to the Embassy; personnel deployed in advance of the training; post-exercise evaluation teams; and in some cases, the host nation military, according to U.S. Army Reserve and National Guard officials. In a March 1994 memorandum on the review of the requirement for JTF-B, to the Chief of Staff of the Army (CSA), the Army staff concluded that training activities in the region could continue without support from U.S. military personnel at Soto Cano.