“Recognizing the growing proliferation of sophisticated long-range weapons, [the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command] is advancing a plan to defend Guam with a state-of-the-art enhanced integrated air and missile defense system, the Guam Defense System. This land-based 360-degree defense system fuses the most modern air-missile defense programs to deliver a robust capability.”
— Rear Adm. Gregory C. Huffman, commander, Joint Region Marianas; commander U.S. Naval Forces, Marianas; U senior military official of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command for Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia and Palau; and commander, Task Force West. He was writing in an opinion editorial released on Dec. 30.
The 2024 National Defense Authorization Act contains almost $345 million to fund the Guam Missile Defense System. About 700 personnel and 200 support staff will be required for the missile defense system planned for Guam, according to Journal files.