National Defense Magazine:

U.S. Indo-Pacific Command needs funding to defend Guam from increasing missile threats, the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee said March 22.

The Aegis Ashore Missile Defense System is necessary to defend the U.S. territory from China’s naval investments in the Pacific Ocean, said Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., at a Defense Writers Group event. The funding is part of a 3 to 5 percent increase to the national security budget needed to face the great power competitor’s growing military strength, he added.

“We’ve got to be prepared to deal with those threats,” he said. “We can’t just ignore them like some people seem to think we can.”

Indo-Pacific Command has requested $5.2 billion for the system over the next five years. Indo-Pacom Commander Adm. Phil Davidson called it his region’s top acquisition priority. Financing must begin in fiscal year 2021 for it to be in place by 2026, the year adversaries are expected to achieve the capability to overcome the current missile defense system. The backbone of the system will be the Baseline 10 Aegis Ashore system, Davidson said recently…

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