By Lisa Ferdinando
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
KWAJALEIN ATOLL, Marshall Islands, Feb. 21, 2015 – Army Gen.
Martin E. Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, paid a visit here
today to highlight Kwajalein’s importance to the U.S. missile defense and space
programs.
The atoll, located more than 2,000 miles southwest of
Honolulu, is home to the U.S. Army Kwajalein Atoll/Ronald Reagan Ballistic
Missile Defense Test Site.
The U.S. rebalance to the Pacific is a matter of
"national imperative," Dempsey told a town hall audience at an
open-air church with about 200 people in attendance. The general’s wife,
Deanie, was also on-hand to address family-member concerns and answer
questions.
The U.S. rebalance to the Pacific region is important
because 7 of the 9 billion people in the world are projected to be living in
the arc from India to China by 2050, Dempsey said. Where the majority of the
planet’s people live is where the issues -- economic, demographic, security,
climate change -- will be, he said.
Key U.S. Missile Defense, Space Program Site
In addition, the chairman highlighted the importance of the
efforts of the 1,000 people who serve on Kwajalein in support of key U.S.
missile defense and space programs.
Eleven of the 100 islands comprising the atoll are leased by
the United States from the Republic of the Marshall Islands. Radar, optics,
telemetry, and communications equipment on eight islands provide
instrumentation for ballistic missile and missile interceptor testing and space
operations support.
"The future of space … is contested. It's congested and
it's becoming increasingly competitive," Dempsey said. "That's one of
those things where if we don't get ahead of it, you're not going to catch up
once you fall behind."
The chairman answered questions on variety of topics. The
town hall participants, mostly civilian employees, were concerned about the
defense budget, health care, the rebalance to the Pacific, and the U.S.
response to violent extremism.
The commander of U.S. Army Kwajalein Atoll said the people
on Kwajalein are uniquely familiar with the chairman and his spouse because of
their greetings over the American Forces Network.
"We all spent a moment or so with the Dempseys, whether
they knew it or not, as they enter our homes via AFN and wish us all a happy
holiday," said Army Col. Nestor Sadler, drawing laughter from the crowd.
Strategic Site
The visit of the highest-ranking U.S. military officer to
this far-flung atoll underscores just how critical Kwajalein is to national
security, the colonel said.
"If we're not concerned about what our adversaries are
putting in space, and if we're not concerned what is currently in space, then
Kwajalein isn't important, but I have yet to find anyone who thinks we
shouldn't be concerned," Sadler said.
Kwajalein is the world's premier range and test site for
intercontinental ballistic missiles and space operations support, he said.
"This is very important. There are a lot of things that
we do here because of where we're located, that we can't do anywhere else in
the world," he said.
The U.S. military has a great relationship with the
Marshallese people and their government, Sadler said. "Without the
Marshallese workforce, we would not be successful here on Kwajalein," he
said.
The U.S. ambassador to the Marshall Islands, Thomas Hart
Armbruster, said the U.S. is invested in the relationship with the Marshallese.
The United States provides about $75 million a year in
compact assistance, education, health and infrastructure to the Marshall
Islands, he said. That aid runs out in fiscal year 2023, he said, so that is
why the base is so important, because that lease runs through 2066.
"So it's really a partnership between the U.S. and the
RMI that's going to last a lifetime, basically," he said.
"We're responsible for their defense and they've played
a huge role in the history of the U.S. -- from World War II when Marshallese
scouts were here working with our forces," Armbruster said.
During the Battle of Kwajalein the United States wrested
control of the atoll from Japan during World War II. The Marshall Islands
signed a Compact of Free Association with the United States in 1983 and gained
independence in 1986. The two countries negotiated an Amended Compact that
entered into force in 2004.
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