James Moylan Presses Witnesses On The Navy’s Use Of Guam As A ‘Strategic Location’

3 minutes ago

During a House Armed Services Committee hearing prior to the congressional recess, Del. James Moylan (R-GU) spoke on Guam being a potential asset for U.S. Navy shipbuilding.

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Transcript

00:00I now recognize the gentleman from Guam who is such an important member of this

00:05subcommittee and also has a very strategic region of the world which he

00:08represents, Mr. Morgan. Thank you Mr. Chairman and for holding this

00:13hearing today to discuss as you mentioned this critical shipbuilding

00:16need and Guam is a key strategic asset in the Indo-Pacific and playing a

00:22crucial role in defending our nation. Its location makes it an important

00:26logistical hub for moving personnel and supplies to support our presence in the

00:31region. Our nation faces challenges across the defense industry base

00:37particularly with shipyards and shipbuilding. The ship repair facility in

00:43Guam was closed in 1997 during the BRAC process but the equipment was left

00:50behind and still there today. With the increasing threats in Indo-Pacific we

00:56must focus on improving our readiness. This means having the right

01:00infrastructure to support our Navy ships and submarines which are essential for

01:06deterrence and protection in the region. As we prepare for future conflicts it's

01:11vital to maximize all available resource to enhance ship maintenance and repair

01:17capabilities. We cannot overlook Guam's potential to provide the support needed

01:22to keep our military assets ready and operational in this key region. So my

01:28question for Mr. Rourke, you mentioned that poor planning, scheduling and funding are

01:36the main challenges affecting the timely completion of ship maintenance and

01:40repairs. Do you believe having having ship repair capabilities in Guam could

01:47help mitigate the scheduling issues by cutting down the return time from Hawaii

01:52to the mainland? I know that the Navy is interested in improving its ability to

02:00perform ship maintenance in the Indo-Pacific region and that extends

02:07even to a Navy interest in wanting to understand what foreign shipyards can do

02:11in terms of battle damage repair during time of conflict. If the Navy is

02:15interested in that then it would make sense for the Navy to be interested in

02:20making sure that they are taking advantage of the opportunity that Guam

02:25presents for ship repair both on a day-to-day basis and again for battle

02:29damage repair during time of conflict. Thank you and as my colleague mentioned

02:34Guam is USA. We can trust U.S. soil or ship repair folks over there as well. So

02:39thank you for your answer. This question is for Dr. Seidel. Your testimony

02:44highlighted the importance of expanding and modernizing key production and

02:49repair facilities for our nation's security given Guam's strategic location.

02:54What efforts are being made to reauthorize the lease for the Guam

02:59shipyard repair facility to enhance capabilities in the Indo-Pacific? Sir

03:06thank you. Obviously a very critical spot for us because of everything going on in

03:11that region. We are having those discussions right now around where we

03:16are trying to do our ship repair and ship maintenance. I concur with

03:20everything Mr. O'Rourke said also and my commitment to you is to continue to have

03:27that discussion to try and get to a good solution that helps all of us and

03:32improves our tactical advantage there. I appreciate that and also along with your

03:37constant fight to let them know that we're there we're ready to serve and

03:42Guam is USA so let's let's help out one another. Sir I appreciate that a lot. I

03:47mean it. Appreciate it. And one more question for you please. How can the

03:50federal government leverage partnership with local workforce development

03:54programs to address the shortage of skilled workers in the defense industry

03:59based to meet production demands? Yeah I think we are doing a lot of those things

04:06both local regions and nationally. We stood up the accelerated training

04:12facility for defense manufacturing in Danville. We have six regional pipelines

04:17and one national pipeline all part of the SIB and MIB monies that that you

04:23have also graciously funded us for. So we're putting that to good use to get

04:28after trades and labor for the yards and think we're we're gonna we're having

04:34good effect there. I think it still then goes back to the attrition issues and

04:38what are we doing with wages to make sure that our retention once we get them

04:42allows us to keep them so that we we make the inroads that we need but but

04:46we're after that. I appreciate that. We have a lot of young kids anxious to help

04:50our nation and get that good education so with your support we can help fund

04:55that. So I appreciate it. Thank you to the panels. Thank you Mr. Chairman. I yield back.

James Moylan Presses Witnesses On The Navy’s Use Of Guam As A ‘Strategic Location’

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