High intensity operations

Country Dates Deployment Details
Afghanistan 2001– About 10,000 troops British troops have been based in Afghanistan since the US-led invasion there in 2001. Currently, under Operation Herrick, the Army maintains troops in Camp Souter, Kabul and a brigade on 6-monthly rotation in the southern province of Helmand, mostly based in Camp Bastion and forward operating bases. In late 2009, the resident brigade is 11 Brigade. This brigade has previously served tours in Afghanistan. In 2009, the then Secretary of State for Defence Bob Ainsworth announced British troop numbers in Afghanistan to increase by 500 to a new high of more than 9,500 by late 2009.

Low intensity operations

Country Dates Deployment Details
Cyprus 1960– Two resident infantry battalions, Royal Engineers, 16 Flight Army Air Corps and Joint Service Signals Unit at Ayios Nikolaos as a part of British Forces Cyprus The UK retains two Sovereign Base Areas in Cyprus after the island's independence. The bases serve as forward bases for deployments in the Middle East. British forces are also deployed separately with UN peacekeeping forces on the island. Principal facilities are Alexander Barracks at Dhekelia and Salamanca Barracks at Episkopi.
Falkland Islands 1982– An infantry company group and an Engineer Squadron Previously a platoon-sized Royal Marines Naval Party acted as the military presence. After the 1982 war between Argentina and the UK, the garrison was enlarged and bolstered with an RAF base at Mount Pleasant on East Falkland.
Gibraltar 1704–1991 One infantry battalion, Joint Provost and Security Unit as a part of British Forces Gibraltar British Army garrison is provided by an indigenous regiment, the Royal Gibraltar Regiment, which has been on the Army regular establishment since the last British battalion left in 1991.
Northern Ireland 1920– About 3,200 troops Since 2007 part of Operation Helvetic which replace Operation Banner.
Sierra Leone 1999 Only a few The British Army were deployed to Sierra Leone, a former British colony on Operation Palliser in 1999 to aid the government in quelling violent uprisings by militiamen, under United Nations resolutions. Troops remain in the region to provide military support and training to the Sierra Leonean government.
Pakistan 2009–2012 24 instructors 24 instructors from the British Army along with 6 American Army personnel will be training Pakistan’s paramilitary Frontier Corps over a period of 3 years

Permanent overseas postings

Country Dates Deployment Details
Belize 1940s– British Army Training and Support Unit Belize and 25 Flight Army Air Corps British troops have been based in Belize from around late 1940s until 1994. Belize's neighbour, Guatemala claimed the territory and there were numerous border disputes. At the request of the Belizean government, British troops remained in Belize after independence in 1981 to provide a defence force.
Brunei 1962– One battalion from the Royal Gurkha Rifles, British Garrison, Training Team Brunei (TTB) and 7 Flight Army Air Corps A Gurkha battalion has been maintained in Brunei since the Brunei Revolt in 1962 at the request of Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddin III. The Training Team Brunei (TTB) is the Army's jungle warfare school, while the small number of garrison troops support the battalion. 7 Flight Army Air Corps provides helicopter support to both the Gurkha battalion and the TTB.
Canada 1972– British Army Training Unit Suffield and 29 (BATUS) Flight Army Air Corps A training centre in the Alberta prairie which is provided for the use of British Army and Canadian Forces under agreement with the government of Canada. British forces conduct regular, major armoured training exercises here every year, with helicopter support provided by 29 (BATUS) Flight AAC.
Germany 1945–2020 1st (UK) Armoured Division as part of British Forces Germany British forces remained in Germany after the end of the Second World War. Forces declined considerably after the end of the Cold War, although in October 2010 Prime Minister David Cameron announced large cuts in defence with all UK troops currently in Germany to leave by 2020.
Kenya 2010– British Army Training Unit Kenya The Army has a training centre in Kenya, under agreement with the Kenyan government. It provides training facilities for three infantry battalions per year

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