ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates, May 27 (UPI) -- France opened its first permanent military base in the Persian Gulf amid concerns over Iran's nuclear program, officials said.
The Guardian reported that the base is in Abu Dhabi, and is the first foreign military installation built by France for 50 years and its first ever base outside French or African soil.
The French base, dubbed Peace Camp, was built in less than 18 months. Its 500 troops and major naval and air operations are intended to safeguard shipping lanes and help in the fight against piracy off the Somali coast, the British newspaper reported.
The base, which opened Tuesday, comes as French President Nicolas Sarkozy has taken a hard-line stance against Tehran's pursuit of nuclear arms.
Sarkozy said Tuesday that the base, 137 miles from the Iranian coast, does not amount to a "targeting" of a particular country but safeguarding France's "friends" in the Emirates.
