Secretary of War Pete Hegseth kicked off a brief firestorm Friday during a press conference with the Qatari Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Defense Affairs Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani. While engaged in mutual backslapping over defense cooperation, Hegseth praised the Qatari role in brokering the ongoing cease-fire/peace agreement between Israel and Hamas, which was only possible after Israel blew up Hamas's leadership, which was in luxury accommodations in Doha. And he announced the opening of a training facility for Qatari pilots at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho.
HEGSETH: No one other than President Trump could have achieved the peace that we believe will be a lasting peace in Gaza and Qatar played a substantial role from the beginning, working with our folks to ensure that came about. So I want to thank you for that historic peace, and I look forward to joining the president as that gets, it’s already been delivered, but as that’s formally signed as well. I’m also proud that today we’re announcing…signing a letter of acceptance to build a Qatari Emiri Air Force facility at the Mountain Home Air Base in Idaho. The location will host a contingent of Qatari F-15s and pilots who enhance our combined training, increased lethality, interoperability. It’s just another example of our partnership, and I hope you know, Your Excellency, that you can count on us. We saw in Midnight Hammer, in those moments when we needed support in the region, Qatar was there; without a doubt, without a blink. And that has meant a great deal. I’ve had the opportunity to see that first-hand, operationally. I want to thank you, I want to thank your country for hosting our troops. It’s wonderful to welcome you to the Pentagon.
The words had hardly left Hegseth's lips when the usual suspects were attacking Hegseth and crying treason.
Will Qatari pilots be allowed to use test ranges? Are they going to be allowed to carry bombs while flying in the US?
— Laura Loomer (@LauraLoomer) October 10, 2025
We need an answer from the Trump admin on this. @SecWar
As saner voices pointed out, like our own Buzz Patterson, going ballistic over this statement didn't make much sense.
No. It’s a legit question.
— Laura Loomer (@LauraLoomer) October 11, 2025
Why is it stupid to protect Americans from the threat of Islamic terror?
Qatar harbored the mastermind of 9/11. They aren’t an ally.
You can’t be serious.
It’s really not a security issue. Qatar is not “building a base,” that base has been around forever. Mountain Home.
— Buzz Patterson (@BuzzPatterson) October 11, 2025
They’re getting a facility on an existing base so that we can train their pilots in the aircraft we sold them. The US has been doing this forever. I know, I was an…
I know, I was an Air Force pilot.
Remember, also, Qatar just helped Trump achieve a ceasefire in Gaza. It’s part of a bigger picture.
Pete Hegseth, himself, posted a clarification.
Important clarification:
— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) October 10, 2025
The U.S. military has a long-standing partnership w/ Qatar, including today’s announced cooperation w/ F-15QA aircraft. However, to be clear, Qatar will not have their own base in the United States—nor anything like a base. We control the existing base,…
We control the existing base, like we do with all partners.
Qatar is purchasing a new fleet of F-15s. This will require regular training for pilots and maintenance crews to service the aircraft. It makes much more sense to do that in the U.S. than in Qatar, simply because maintenance facilities are available in the U.S. and won't have to be recreated in Qatar. In addition, Qatar is tiny, so any training by its air force requires international coordination. Locating the Qatari training facility at a U.S. airbase gives them access to U.S. weapons ranges and airspace for training.
Several countries have permanent training facilities in the U.S.
The German air force maintains a tactical training command at the Sheppard Air Force Base in Texas. The command was previously in Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico. German pilots have trained in the U.S. since 1958.
Hundreds of Singaporean air force personnel are based at Mountain Home. They live and work on the base as part of a training program aimed at qualifying them to operate F-15 fighter jets. Like Qatar, Singapore’s small geographical size forces the country to send its service members abroad for training. Singaporean troops also train in Australia, which offers a training ground that is five times the size of Singapore as well as live-fire facilities. It also has an air force squadron based in France.
In 2018, Singapore was authorized to expand its presence at Mountain Home, with Washington approving the construction of additional support facilities.
Pilots from the Netherlands, Britain and other NATO allies train in the United States.
Ukrainian pilots have a training facility at Morris Air National Guard Base in Arizona.
Of course, this program is not without risks. A Saudi training program at Pensacola Naval Air Station was shuttered after an aviation cadet did the most Islamic thing possible and opened fire at the training facility, killing three American sailors and wounding eight.
While I believe Qatar has a poisonous influence in the U.S., spending billions to fund universities and hire "think tanks" to promote its interests, there is no doubt that it is also a useful "frenemy" to have in the Gulf.
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