John Moolenaar, the newly appointed chairman of the House China Committee, has raised alarm over what he perceives as a lack of urgency from the Biden administration regarding the protection of American military bases in the Indo-Pacific region against potential threats from China.
In a letter addressed to Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall and Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro, Moolenaar highlighted the vulnerability of American military installations in the region, including those on U.S. territories like Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, to potential attacks from China. He cited an analysis indicating that China possesses sufficient weaponry to potentially overwhelm existing air and missile defenses guarding these bases.
Expressing concern over what he described as an “alarming lack of urgency” by the Department of Defense in implementing defensive measures, Moolenaar emphasized the need for immediate action to bolster the security of U.S. bases in the Indo-Pacific. He pointed out deficiencies in passive defenses, such as the shortage of hardened aircraft shelters compared to Chinese military bases, and called for the adoption of robust measures to minimize the impact of missile attacks.
Moolenaar, along with several congressional colleagues, urged Pentagon officials to provide information on steps taken to enhance passive defenses and plans for creating hardened shelters and bunkers to protect U.S. forces in the region. He emphasized the urgency of initiating critical construction projects to strengthen base resilience before it’s too late.
The warning comes amid growing concerns among lawmakers about the vulnerability of regions like Guam, which is within range of nuclear-capable missiles owned by China and North Korea. With Guam hosting key military installations crucial to U.S. strategic interests in the region, addressing security gaps assumes paramount importance in the face of evolving threats posed by China’s military capabilities.
