15 Aug 2024

Concerns raised about US military buildup on Guam

From , 6:03 am on 15 August 2024
U.S. Navy E/A-18 Growler, Japanese Air Self-Defense Force F-2, JASDF F-15MJ and U.S. Air Force F-16CM fly next to a USAF B-52H Stratofortress over Tinian and Saipan during Cope North 24, Feb. 6, 2024. Cope North gives participants the opportunity to exercise interoperability through agile combat employment and integrated generation of airpower from dispersed locations across the Indo-Pacific. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Alyssa Bankston)

Guam's Governor Lou Leon Guerrero said missile testing and housing nuclear weapons on the US territory is a way of deterring aggression. Photo: Facebook / Andersen Air Force Base, Guam

A former U.S. Congressman for Guam says military expansion on the island is happening at rates that haven't been seen since World War II.

The Governor of Guam says it's a sign of the times to come as more details unfold about the United States' plan to defend its military bases in the Pacific.

 Now, Guamanians are sounding the alarm about the military ramp up and what it could mean for them and the region at large.

RNZ Pacific's Eleisha Foon filed this report from Guam.