James Moylan, the Republican delegate to the U.S. House from Guam, is stepping up pressure for Congress and the U.S. military to bolster the Pacific island nation’s defenses against a potential missile attack in a hypothetical future war with China.
On Nov. 16, Del. Moylan told NTD’s “Capitol Report” that he remains “very concerned” about Guam’s defensive posture in the face of advanced new weapons being developed by China’s People’s Liberation Army.
He noted that Guam sits about 1,900 miles from the Chinese mainland and is positioned even closer to U.S. allies within the region.
Guam’s geographic position makes it a valuable location for aircraft and warships in the event they need to refit and refuel in a potential conflict in the Indo-Pacific region. The island hosts the only submarine base in the western Pacific, and its Andersen Air Force Base provides critical runway space for strategic bombers and fighters.
Guam’s value as a U.S. territory to the United States and its allies could also make it an attractive target for adversaries to attack in a future conflict in the region.
Mr. Moylan said the United States must establish a 360-degree missile defense system to protect Guam fully but that there’s still far to go before that goal is met.
“Right now, we have some capability, but it’s not what we need to defend against the Communist Chinese Party,” Mr. Moylan said, referring to the ruling party in China’s one-party state.
Mr. Gallagher asked that Ms. Wormuth consider deploying National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS) or Iron Dome missile defense systems to Guam as a means of covering some of the gaps in the island’s defenses while the Army deals with delays with the IFPC system.
Extra Funding Sought for Missile Defense
Earlier this year, Mr. Moylan introduced an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would provide an additional $147 million in funding for Guam’s missile defense system. Although he’s a non-voting member of Congress, Mr. Moylan told “Capitol Report” that his amendment is making progress and could soon pass.He also endorsed Mr. Gallagher’s idea to provide NASAMS and Iron Dome systems to Guam in the meantime. Mr. Moylan suggested that the United States could procure more missile defense systems through its allies if supply chain issues continue to delay the development of the new IFPC system.
“Like Congressman Gallagher is saying, let’s do something right away,” Mr. Moylan said. “We have capabilities in Ukraine that maybe we can use [in] Guam. We have other friendly nations that can assist us as well. We just can’t wait around because things are not ready at this point. What are we going to do in the meantime?”
Mr. Moylan said Guam is doing what it can to support this ongoing military buildup but that the resident workforce on the small island is limited and that this buildup is reliant on foreign workers.
In addition to providing new missile defense systems for Guam, Mr. Moylan urged Congress to include a resolution in the NDAA that extends work visas for those foreign workers.
