[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 128 (Tuesday, September 17, 1996)]
[House]
[Page H10432]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




[[Page H10432]]



              GUAM'S ROLE IN OPERATIONS IN THE MIDDLE EAST

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of May 
12, 1995, the gentleman from Guam [Mr. Underwood] is recognized during 
morning business for 5 minutes.
  Mr. UNDERWOOD. Mr. Speaker, yesterday on Guam, the first of some 
2,500 Kurdish refugees arrived as part of Operation Pacific Haven. The 
movement of these Kurdish refugees who have been associated with United 
States Government activities is timely and necessary and makes good on 
an implicit American commitment to their safety.
  As was the case 2 weeks ago with the B-52 strikes on Iraq, the role 
of Guam in the events unfolding in the Middle East is of enormous 
importance and consequence to our country's actions. Although any map 
will clearly show that the utilization of Guam might not make 
geographic sense for Operation Pacific Haven, any understanding of 
today's world shows that Guam is one of the few reliable places which 
this country can use in a moment's notice. Without Guam, a reliable 
United States base, American military flexibility is reduced. For the 
military planners managing the Mideast crisis, Guam is between Iraq and 
a hard place.
  Given the cumbersome need for fly-over rights as well as the need to 
seek prior approval of allies, our Nation's mobility and capacity for 
independent action must increasingly rely on mobile forces, friendly 
faces, and dependable bases. Guam fits this bill and is proud to play a 
key role in both the strikes against Iraq and the on-going humanitarian 
mission for providing safe haven in the Pacific for the Kurdish 
refugees.
  I am grateful for the advance notice and consultation which the White 
House gave to my office for the latest operation and I hope this level 
of consultation will continue for any future and sudden change in 
military activity on Guam. I also urge the Department of Defense to 
take all necessary steps to ensure the safety of the refugees as well 
as the community of Guam during the time that it takes to process the 
refugees for resettlement in the continental United States.
  But Mr. Speaker, while Guam remains a cornerstone of America's 
strategic reach in the world, we on Guam are at times concerned that we 
are ignored in calmer times, at those times when we craft policy for 
the territories and for Guam specifically.
  Guam has had a long relationship with the United States military--in 
fact, Guam's relationship with the United States in issues of land, 
immigration, political status change is always evaluated with an eye to 
the consequences for America's power projection and strategic reach.
  We are proud to play a part in the security of the world, but we 
should be rewarded for our role rather than penalized or ignored. Guam 
should be given additional consideration rather than less consideration 
and Guam should be treated according to its contribution rather than 
utilized on the basis of its value.
  Mr. Speaker, we have some legislation on the return of land to the 
Government of Guam once the military no longer needs it and declares it 
excess. The lands in question have been identified as potentially 
releasable. The lands in question were condemned by military officials 
and adjudicated in military courts on Guam in the period from 1945 to 
1949, before civil government was re-established.
  The legislation which we seek simply puts Guam at the head of the 
line over other Federal agencies when the Department of Defense decides 
that they no longer need the land. We are not asking the DOD to release 
land they need to conduct these operations; we are asking them to 
release land which their own planners have indicated they no longer 
need. We are not asking to go beyond Federal laws in how the land is to 
be handled; we are only asking that given Guam's unique history and 
given Guam's unique contribution, that Guam be placed at the head of 
the line for releasable property.
  This is a good deal for Guam, but it is more than that. It is a fair 
deal for all concerned. I urge the members of this institution to 
support this legislation and I hope that the administration will now 
support this legislation.

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