“Everything we do here is shaped by distance, time and access. This is the world’s most militarily complex [Area of Responsibility] on the planet: six of the largest militaries, our treaty allies and multiple nuclear armed states. … Disruptions here are felt everywhere.” “For many years military planning often focused on operating from a relatively small number of large well-established installations. Today our operational environment requires something different. … We often refer to this as operation depth. If one location is degraded or denied, commanders have alternatives. This in essence is posture.”

— Col. Alexis R. Johnson, chief of posture management and infrastructure at IndoPacom. She spoke on July 30 at the Society of American Military Engineers Guam Post Guam Industry Forum at the Dusit Thani Guam Resort.