Summary

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the additional costs to the United States of reflagging 11 Kuwaiti ships and protecting them in the Persian Gulf with military forces.

GAO noted that the: (1) reflagging costs the Coast Guard, Federal Communications Commission, and Maritime Administration incurred were primarily personnel-related and were within their normal operational costs; (2) military services estimated that their additional costs to protect the reflagged ships from July through September 1987 would be $69 million; (3) increased operational tempo of the Navy's Middle East Force resulted in additional costs for ship and aircraft fuel and aircraft maintenance; (4) Air Force's additional costs were primarily for support of reconnaissance and refuelling aircraft; and (5) military services stated that it was not feasible to estimate additional costs beyond September 1987 because of the uncertainties involved.