OPERATIONAL
Gulf: 8,891
Afghanistan: 4,000
Bosnia: 598
Kosovo: 194
UN missions: 317
NON-OPERATIONAL
Germany: 22,500
Northern Ireland: 11,000
Cyprus: 2,761
Falkland Islands: 1,177
Gibraltar: 558
Ascension Island: 40
Diego Garcia: 39
IRAQ
By far the most high profile UK commitment overseas is Operation Telic - the name given to the deployment of 7,200 personnel in Iraq.
Since the end of the war in April 2003, they have been helping to restore essential infrastructure and services and provide security.
UK forces are largely based in the south of the country, mainly in Basra.
Although Basra was regarded as being more peaceful than the volatile capital Baghdad, a recent upsurge in violence has put British forces at the front line more often.
Ministers have been at pains to stress that Britain's commitment in Iraq would be maintained as long as we were needed.
AFGHANISTAN
At present the UK has about 4,000 troops stationed in Afghanistan, following a US-led invasion in October 2001.
British troops were part of the Nato effort to rebuild the country's infrastructure.
But in May this year the Army increased its involvement in the country, taking over from the US in the volatile south of the country as part of an expanded Nato presence.
The deployment is expected to peak at 4,500 in the coming months and the majority will be in Helmand - an area of major Taleban activity and opium production.
The enlarged deployment was predicted to cost £1bn over the three years that the Ministry of Defence expected it to last.
Nato's International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) mission will number about 15,000 soldiers when it reaches its peak.
KOSOVO
A small deployment - not more than about 200-strong - remains in Kosovo, helping to provide stability following the end of the conflict of the late 1990s.
The province is administered by the UN, which is working to reconcile the majority ethnic Albanians and the Serb minority.
Tensions continue to flare up however, and in March 2005 extra British troops were sent to the province at the request of Nato.
BOSNIA
As with Kosovo, the role of British armed forces in Bosnia is one of peacekeeping. At the beginning of this year, some 598 troops remained there.
A European Union-led force, Eufor, is responsible for safeguarding peace and stability following the inter-ethnic war of 1992-95, in which about 250,000 people died.
UN MISSIONS
The Ministry of Defence is involved in supporting a wide range of United Nations missions in countries around the world.
More than 300 British troops are deployed as part of the UN operations, in countries including Sierra Leone, Cyprus, Liberia, Ethiopia, Afghanistan and Georgia.
NORTHERN IRELAND
Some 11,000 British troops are still stationed in Northern Ireland, although their work is among those classed as non-operational.
According to the MoD earlier this year: "The mission of the armed forces in Northern Ireland is to support the Police Service of Northern Ireland in the defeat of terrorism and the maintenance of Public Order in order to assist Her Majesty's government's objective of returning Northern Ireland to normality."
GERMANY
Although much smaller than its deployment in Germany at the height of the Cold War, the UK retains about 22,000 troops in the country - its largest overseas contingent by far.
Germany provides an important base for training and many of the troops are involved in the Allied Rapid Reaction Corps, of which Britain is the lead nation.
CYPRUS
Although Cyprus has been an independent republic since the 1960s, Britain retains two areas of sovereign territory on the island which it uses as bases for more than 2,000 troops.
Covering 98 square miles, the bases are used to give the UK a foothold at a strategic point in the Mediterranean.
In particular, the MoD describes RAF Akrotiri as "an important staging post for military aircraft".
FALKLAND ISLANDS
More than 20 years after the end of the Falklands War, Britain retains a strong presence on the islands, with more than 1,000 troops stationed there.
While the status of the British Overseas Territory is still disputed by Argentina, the personnel are also involved in tasks including road building and mine clearance.
GIBRALTAR
Considered an important base in the Mediterranean, Gibraltar is home to more than 500 British troops.
The MoD says the Rock is "well situated to observe shipping channels through the straits and it could dominate the western entrance to the Mediterranean in time of war".
ASCENSION ISLAND
In the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, far-flung Ascension Island was used as a staging post during the Falklands War - a role it retains.
The 40 or so British troops there are linked to the UK by regular flights to RAF Brize Norton and a six-weekly cargo ship from the MoD.
DIEGO GARCIA
The British territory of Diego Garcia, in the Chagos archipelago in the Indian Ocean, has been a military base since the island was leased to the US in the 1970s.
Fewer than 50 British personnel are stationed at the base at any one time.
Where are British troops and why?
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Originally Posted by Husar
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