Several foreign countries allied to the United Arab Emirates are believed to have made use of Al Minhad Air Base since the early 2000s to support the logistics supply chain for their army operations in Afghanistan. Use of the Al Minhad Air Base is a sensitive matter for the Government of the United Arab Emirates, which imposes a diplomatic agreement stating that the militaries of foreign governments not advertise the host nation nor location of their operations in the United Arab Emirates due to "local sensitivities" about allowing a foreign military presence within its borders. The British Armed Forces have operations at the base. No. 906 Expeditionary Air Wing RAF was stood up at the base on 15 January 2013. 906 Wing was an expansion of the RAF's presence; previously, prior to Christmas 2012, No. 6 Squadron RAF had exercised their Eurofighter Typhoons from the UAE. The Canadian Forces operated a forward logistics support facility in the Middle East which they had codenamed Camp Mirage. It is widely believed that Camp Mirage was located at Al Minhad Air Base from its founding in fall 2001 until its closure in fall 2010 due to an unrelated disagreement over securing additional landing rights for UAE's civilian airlines at Canadian airports. The United States military relied on the UAE bases for assistance during the Gulf War and the recent conflict in Iraq. The Australian Defence Force has used Al Minhad as their main transport and logistics hub in the Middle East since the withdrawal of Australian combat forces from Iraq in 2008. The RAAF had operated AP-3C Orions from the base from 2003 to support operations in the region, however it was not until 2008 when an agreement was signed which allowed Australia to command its regional headquarters there. The ADF maintains a facility at Al Minhad, and as part of the military intervention against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant has deployed Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornets, Boeing E-7A Wedgetails and Airbus KC-30As. During early 2015 the Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornets were replaced by McDonnell Douglas F/A-18A Hornets. The New Zealand Defence Force and the Armed forces of the Netherlands also have deployed assets here. The Italian Air Force has deployed the Task Force Air since July 1, 2015 to support operations in the region.
