$12 billion U.S. super naval base to be built in Guam

Hagatna - The United States has announced that it plans to establish an $12 billion super naval base on the Pacific island of Guam in order to curtail China's military build-up. However, residents are concerned about the latest move.

According to a new report from the London Telegraph, the United States will install a super naval base in the Pacific island of Guam, which will be the second largest military base investment in recent U.S. history. The planned naval base will have live-fire training sites, a dock for a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, a missile defence system and an expansion of its airbase. In the future, the base will house approximately 19,000 Marines that will be transferred from the unpopular base in Okinawa, Japan. This move by the U.S. government is concerning Guam residents for fear that the base will destroy their ecosystem and tourism economy. The island’s population stands at 173,000 and estimates show that it’ll increase by 50 percent. An Environmental Protection Agency report warns that there could be a serious water shortage and an aircraft carrier could damage 71 acres of coral reefs. The report states that a base “would exacerbate existing substandard environmental conditions on Guam.” Despite Guam concerns, the U.S. is attempting to curtail Chinese military build-up. China has expanded its fleet over the past 10 years in order to deter future U.S. military involvement in a possible China-Taiwan conflict and also to project power in many gas and oil-rich disputed territories. Furthermore, China is also protecting sea lanes from the Middle East, an area where China will import between 70 and 80 percent of oil by 2035, which the U.S. fears.