Author	: Bill Kochman
Publish	: Apr. 25, 2026
Update	: Apr. 25, 2026
Parts	: 04

Synopsis:



This four-part series discusses a variety of very important issues as they relate to the heated military environment in the world today. More specifically, the series deals with the situation in the Indo-Pacific region -- including on Guam -- where I have lived for the past forty-three years. A few of the key subjects include the military situation on Guam, and how it is directly related to the USA's military strategy, as well as North Korea and China's intentions regarding Guam, Xi Jinping's fast-approaching goal of taking Taiwan, China's very alarming military buildup, and Japan's surprising new phase of militarization. It also exposes false warmongering Christians, and explains the proper attitude which Christians should have regarding war, and our relationship to the world. Other topics are addressed as well.

My original intention was to submit this article to one of our local newspapers -- Pacific Daily News -- as an opinion piece. However, due to this article's length, it has become too long for publication. Besides that, as I already said, I do make some rather strong statements in this article which would more than likely ruffle a few feathers anyway, which might make the Pacific Daily News somewhat hesitant to even publish it. Thus, I have now opted for this current article format instead.

I am going to begin this discussion with a rather powerful statement which is directly related to my chosen island home for the past four decades, that of course being Guam. It is my view that some people -- meaning local Guam residents -- have a misconception regarding the U.S. military's attitude concerning the civilian population of Guam. Some of my local readers -- who are very patriotic and very much U.S.-aligned -- will probably NOT like what I am about to state. In fact, some of them may even get angry and deny it. Nevertheless, being a 40-year resident of Guam, I'm convinced that I speak the truth. Furthermore, I am rather certain that many other residents of Guam will agree with me when they see what I have to say in this article.

The first uncomfortable truth which some people do not like to acknowledge is that if it were not for Guam's strategic location in the Second Island Chain in the northwestern sector of the Pacific Ocean, and the fact that we are a U.S. territory, I seriously doubt that Uncle Sam and the American military would take any interest in us whatsoever. I do not believe that they really view us as people, but simply as a useful military asset, to be used as America sees fit. While some of my readers may view my position as being a bit harsh, nevertheless, I personally believe this to be true.

For those of my readers who are not residents of Guam, let me share a little background information in order to bring you up to speed. Due to Guam's location as the westernmost territory of the United States, every since World War II, it has been a very critical U.S. strategic military hub. In fact, Guam's importance to U.S. interests has only grown as the global situation changes and continues to evolve. Guam is often referred to as the tip of the spear. Currently, our island is home to various U.S. military installations, which are managed by Joint Region Marianas. These installations include the following:

1. Andersen Air Force Base - located in the northern village of Yigo, AAFB hosts the 36th Bomber Wing, fighter jets, and extensive munitions storage. AAFB is the most important U.S. air base west of Hawaii, and is one of four Air Force Bomber Forward Operating Locations and the ONLY base in the Western Pacific that can permanently service U.S. heavy strategic bombers, including B-1B, B-2, and B-52 bombers. AAFB is one of two critical bases in the Asia-Pacific region, the other one being the joint UK-U.S. military base Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean.

Located about 150-160 miles to the north of Guam is the tiny, uninhabited island of Farallon de Medinilla. It is a part of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. This island has served as a U.S. Navy bombing range since 1971. Due to our island's almost unrestricted airspace and close proximity to Farallon de Medinilla, Andersen Air Force Base has served as an ideal training location. Furthermore, it is rather common for me to hear military jets and helicopters flying over my home, even though I do not even live near Andersen Air Force Base. Apparently, my home is located in one of their flight corridors. In fact, as I was typing out this article, a noisy jet flew overhead. When this happens, it serves as a signal to me that something important is happening somewhere in the world, and Guam is being called into duty.

2. Naval Base Guam (a.k.a. Big Navy) - located on the Orote Peninsula bordering Apra Harbor, and extending into our two southern villages of Santa Rita and Piti, NBG serves as the home for Commander Submarine Squadron 15, Coast Guard Sector Guam, and Navy Special Warfare Unit One. Currently -- as of April 2026 -- Naval Base Guam is the home port for several forward-deployed Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarines -- including the USS Annapolis, USS Asheville, USS Jefferson City, USS Springfield, and USS Minnesota -- as well as two forward-deployed submarine tenders -- the USS Emory S. Land (AS-39) and the USS Frank Cable (AS-40) -- which provide essential maintenance and logistical support to the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command's operations in the 5th and 7th Fleet areas of responsibility.

To clarify, the U.S. 5th Fleet -- which is headquartered in Manama, Bahrain, and technically under U.S. Central Command -- covers the Middle East, including the Arabian Gulf, Red Sea, Gulf of Oman, and parts of the Indian Ocean. The U.S. 7th Fleet -- which is headquartered in Yokosuka, Japan -- operates in the Western Pacific and Indian Oceans. It covers the largest forward-deployed area, including East Asia and Southeast Asia.

3. Marine Corps Base Camp Blaz - located in Guam's central village of Dededo, it was formally activated in October of 2020. A subsequent formal ceremony was held in January of 2023. As the first new Marine Corps base established on the island of Guam since 1952, Marine Corps Base Camp Blaz is part of the U.S.-Japan alliance to reorganize U.S. forces in the Indo-Pacific region, and to relocate Marines from the Japanese island of Okinawa to Guam. As a strategic logistics hub, the base includes training and support facilities.

4. Guam Army National Guard - The Joint Force Headquarters - Guam and the Guam National Guard Readiness Center are located in the central village of Barrigada, while the Army Aviation Operations Facility #1 is located at the Antonio B. Won Pat International Airport, which stretches between the villages of Tamuning and Barrigada.

While the western Pacific Ocean island of Guam is the largest island in the Mariana Islands archipelago, it is nevertheless small having an area of just 212 square miles or about thirty miles long and four to twelve miles wide. Even though Guam is a U.S. territory, many Americans have never even heard of it, or know very little about it. However, as you can see by the previous information, we are NOT without significance to the American government and the U.S. military. In fact, as I have already made clear, we are of strategic importance to them. We are the tip of the spear pointed at some of the US's chief perceived adversaries.

Something else you should know is that Guamanians are for the most part very patriotic Americans who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces with pride. In fact, Guam has consistently ranked higher than any U.S. state in per capita enlistment rates; and according to U.S. Census data, one in twenty Guamanians is a military veteran. Consequently, this has also meant that Guam has suffered a high per capita casualty rate in some of the recent conflicts. For example, in 2024, the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors reported that the count for Gold Star Families -- families of fallen service members -- on Guam and the CNMI was 77, which reflects a long history of military service and consequent loss.

More specifically, during what can only be described as the failed Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, at least eleven Guamanian service members died during that horrible twenty-year war campaign. During Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn which were different phases of the 2003 Iraq War, at least six Guamanians died in Iraq, bring the total number of Guamanian casualties to at least seventeen between these two conflicts. However, please note that these figures may not include all casualties from other, smaller military operations or non-hostile deaths in other locations.

But that is not all. As I've mentioned on previous occasions, Russia, China and North Korea are all very much aware of our island's strategic importance to the United States. It should come as no surprise to you then that Andersen Air Force Base is reportedly found on Chinese war strategy maps, and I would assume that the same holds true for North Korean maps as well. Furthermore, it is a well-established fact that both China and North Korea have missiles pointed at us. North Korea has in fact test fired missiles in our general direction. China has likewise had several of its battleship groups scope out Guam from a distance of only 300 or 400 miles in recent years.

Despite Guam's strategic importance to American interests and military operations around the world, the patriotism of most Guamanians, and the Guamanians who have lost their lives due to America's foreign conflicts, it may shock you to know that as of April 2026, not only can Guamanians -- who are American citizens -- NOT vote in American presidential elections every four years, but neither do we have voting members in the U.S. House of Representatives or in the U.S. Senate. All we get is one non-voting delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives who is elected locally to serve a two-year term. That is it. As you can imagine, many Guamanians view this as a serious injustice. In fact, Guam's political status in relationship to the USA has been a source of local controversy for many years now and still remains unresolved.

In addition to the aforementioned military installations on Guam, our island also hosts the THAAD missile defense system, which leads me to my next important point, which is this: In my view, the planned 360° missile shield -- referred to as EIAMD, or Enhanced Integrated Air and Missile Defense system -- may be too little too late. Right now, Guam's leaders and the U.S. military seem to be playing a game of catch-up with the Chinese and the North Koreans. The leaders of those two countries have for years had their thoughts and intentions regarding the island of Guam, and they are obviously not all good thoughts, as I am sure you already understand.

Now that these two nations have made their intentions rather well known -- Taiwan's takeover, war strategy maps, scoping Guam and missiles pointed at Guam -- only in recent years has Guam's leadership and the U.S. military deduced that they've really dropped the ball, and that they need to beef up Guam's security as quickly as possible. But like any great beast, the U.S. military moves slowly; particularly when it involves adaptation and change. So I truly wonder if the planned EIAMD missile shield will be put into operation in time. From what I have read, the system's full implementation is targeted for the early 2030s.

My friends, please stop and think about this for a moment. Do you honestly believe that China's leader Xi Jinping is going to wait until the USA, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines and Australia have strengthened their combined forces, closed up any weak links in their defenses, and fully dominated the western Indo-Pacific region, before he decides that it's time to make a potential military grab for the island nation of Taiwan?

Is that what you would really do if you were the aggressor in this situation? Or would you attack Taiwan sooner rather than later before an opposing military force -- led by the USA -- is capable of stopping you? U.S. President Trump has claimed several times now that Xi Jinping has given him his word that he will not make a grab for Taiwan while Trump still remains in office. Seriously? Is Mr. Trump really that gullible and naive? Given some of Trump's recent decisions -- such as his current war in Iran -- I do have to wonder about this.

Jinping claims that he prefers to not have to take Taiwan by force. He supposedly prefers peaceful reunification. Yet at the same time, Jinping has also made it clear on multiple occasions that he wants the PLAN -- People's Liberation Army Navy -- to be prepared to take Taiwan possibly by 2027. My friends, that is less than a year from now, and as much as four or five years before Guam's EIAMD system will be fully operational. Of course, neither can we ignore the multiple and very provocative military exercises in which China has engaged in the waters which surround Taiwan in recent years.

As I mentioned earlier, even my own island of Guam has been scoped by Chinese battleship groups several times in recent years. Likewise, China has been harassing ships in the South China Sea for quite some time now. Both Japan and the nation of the Philippines have become alarmed by China's aggressive actions. As a result, these two nations have drawn closer to the USA. Furthermore, to some people's alarm, Japan has been becoming increasingly militarized under its current Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi, which is totally out of character for that nation. But it is because of Chinese aggression.

In addition to the aforementioned points, if anyone doubts Xi's intentions, just look at the massive military buildup which China has been undergoing for years now. It includes new submarines, aircraft carriers, hypersonic missiles and much more. You simply don't do those things unless you are planning for some major operation. Following is an excerpt taken from a Washington Times news article that was posted two days ago. With the headline of "Pacific Commander Says Victory Over Iran Needed to Deter Chinese Attack on Taiwan", it states the following. Please note that U.S. Navy Admiral Paparo is the 27th Commander of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command since May 2024. Paparo leads the largest combatant command, and is responsible for all U.S. military activity in the Indo-Pacific region -- where Guam is located -- overseeing roughly 380,000 personnel across thirty-eight nations:

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"On China's rapid military buildup, Adm. Paparo revealed that since 2024, China has delivered 12 submarines, including nuclear attack and nuclear ballistic missile submarines, an aircraft carrier, two cruisers, 10 destroyers, seven frigates, and amphibious and combat logistics forces to People's Liberation Army forces.

Additionally, the Chinese military will more than double the number of nuclear warheads in its arsenal in the next five years from current estimates of more than 600 warheads.

The large-scale arms buildup is for power projection, regional coercion and to enforce Beijing's vision of a new China-led rules-based order, he said."

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I have been warning for literally years now that to Russia and China's delight, the USA has been overstretching itself militarily-speaking. Supplying Ukraine with weapons, and now being involved in the current Iran War, certainly does NOT help America's situation. After all, weapons can only be manufactured so fast, and if more weapons are expended than are actually being produced, eventually, there's going to be a major supply chain problem. In addition to China's massive military buildup, this is why I'm becoming rather convinced that despite President Trump and Pete Hegseth's bluster and bravado, the United States may not be a match if and when Xi Jinping makes his attempt to invade Taiwan.

Following is additional proof that the United States is now spread way too thin in a military sense. These excerpts are taken from a The Washington Times article that is headlined "Japan Accelerates Military Upgrades, Embraces Arms Exports, Leans in on Indo-Pacific Partnerships". Please take note of the words which I have placed in uppercase letters:

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"The Russia-Ukraine war HAS EXPOSED CAPACITY SHORTCOMINGS AMONG WESTERN ARMS SUPPLIERS, and the Iran war in the Middle East is running down U.S. stocks of precision munitions.

As China massively builds out its fleet and the U.S. faces NAVAL OVERSTRETCH WORLDWIDE, Japan's potential role in a Taiwan contingency is capturing attention.

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I am not alone in my assertion that the United States may not be able to prevent China from bringing Taiwan into its sphere. According to the information I have read recently, while the United States may not say it openly, there are certain reports -- based on defense assessments -- which do suggest that China's current military buildup may make it both difficult and cost-prohibitive for the United States to intervene successfully in the Taiwan Strait. China has made such big strides in recent years -- not only with regard to its ballistic missiles and such, but also with its navy -- that a 2026 report indicated that it might give China the advantage in a Taiwan invasion scenario. The report went so far as to suggest that the Chinese could possibly win, or as I just said, simply make the cost of U.S. intervention too high for the United States to proceed.

The actual source of these reports is the 2026 Annual Threat Assessment of the ODNI -- Office of the Director of National Intelligence -- and the Pentagon's own assessments of the People's Liberation Army. To reiterate, based on these two assessments, if a China-USA military confrontation were to erupt in the Indo-Pacific region right now, China would more than likely have the upper hand, and the United States might not be able to prevent China from taking Taiwan. China would quite possibly be victorious, and it would thus achieve its long-sought goal, despite the various alliances which the United States has achieved in the Indo-Pacific region.

Furthermore, these alliances -- which I will discuss more in depth in a moment -- are another sticking point. For America to successfully fend off China, the powers which have allied themselves with the USA would have to come through at the proper time. The question is, would they? Or like Europe has just done in backing off and not helping the United States to secure the Strait of Hormuz, would these Indo-Pacific allies vacillate as well? That is a very good question, isn't it?

As it turns out, as I dug even deeper into this issue, what I discovered is that in line with the fact that certain U.S. policymakers doubt the United States' ability to defeat a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, the aforementioned conclusions of the 2026 Annual Threat Assessment are likewise supported by the 2025 National Security Strategy document which was published under the authority of President Trump. It also acknowledges that the American military CANNOT maintain the capabilities to deter China along the First Island Chain WITHOUT THE HELP OF ITS REGIONAL ALLIES. For those of my readers who may not be familiar with this phrase, the First Island Chain consists of the Kuril Islands, Japan and the Ryukyu Islands, Taiwan, the northern Philippines, and the large island of Borneo.

In other words, the First Island Chain extends all the way from Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula in the northeast, to the Malay Peninsula in the southwest. It serves as the first of three such chains to militarily prevent Chinese expansion. By the way, as I have mentioned previously, Guam is a part of the Second Island Chain. But the key point is this: the 2025 National Security Strategy document not only casts a lot of doubt on America's ability to defend Taiwan against mainland China, but it plainly states that the USA will NOT be successful without the help of its regional allies. But then the 2025 NSS document explained exactly why this is.

As I told you a moment ago, it too stated that because it is not fully known exactly how much allied nations will really participate in the defense of Taiwan until that day actually arrives, the USA may possibly and suddenly find itself in a lone fight against a very powerful China. In other words, my friends, it would be very similar to what occurred with the United States, Iran and the Strait of Hormuz, where Europe abandoned the USA, and refused to offer assistance. The NSS document likewise concluded that in certain scenarios, China might "achieve a balance of forces so unfavorable to [the United States] as to make defending that island impossible." And there you have it! So these various assessments pretty much all arrived at the very same conclusions. So it seems that with good reason, President Donald Trump isn't in any hurry to challenge China in a direct and major way.

There's another very interesting point worth mentioning here. In the Indo-Pacific region, the USA is not just outmatched by China's navy. They are also outmatched and majorly hindered by the distances involved. Let me explain. While the USA has bases at both Yokosuka, Japan and Guam, and is also shoring up support and alliances with Australia, the Philippines, New Zealand, South Korea and India, the time and distance factors determine in large part how successful an American defense of Taiwan would be.

Stop and think about this. By the time the United States and its regional allies are able to come to Taiwan's defense, Xi Jinping may have ALREADY surrounded and taken the island in a very fast lightning strike. After all, Taiwan is merely one hundred miles offshore from mainland China. Furthermore, in recent months, China has clearly demonstrated its ability to quickly surround and blockade Taiwan if it so desires. In fact, as I watched the events play out, I thought to myself, "Is China really going to do it this time, or is Xi Jinping simply playing cat and mouse and testing the waters for his future invasion?" In contrast, America and its allies would have to travel hundreds of miles or more in order to assist Taiwan in its fight against Xi Jinping's China and the PLAN.

So it seems to me that any American notion of really saving Taiwan from China's grip may be foolhardy and nothing but political theater at best, which Mr. Trump just loves to do. How often has he threatened something and then suddenly just pulled back? But, of course, as I mentioned earlier, Trump is trusting that Xi Jinping will not attempt to take Taiwan while he is still the president of the USA. Trump seems to be hoping that Jinping will patiently wait until Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Kamala Harris, Michelle Obama or some other "fine lady" is president. Please excuse my sarcasm, or not.

However, for the sake of balance, let me add another point here. There's another unknown factor that could possibly tip the balance in either side's favor, and that is that no one -- at least we the public -- really knows just how many Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarines the USA has lurking in the waters around Taiwan. As I mentioned near the start of this series, five of them are home ported here on my island of Guam. These subs could cause much damage to China's naval forces. Of course, China has its submarines as well, so who knows. However, submarines are not the only problem. If you have been paying attention to the news, then you may know that both China and the United States are currently in the process of developing literally thousands of advanced UUVs. That is to say, Unmanned Underwater Vehicles, or in common lingo, underwater attack drones.

But this military madness does not end underwater or even in the air with very powerful jets, supersonic and hypersonic missiles, destructive bombs of various sorts, etc. One thing about all of these weapons is that they are very expensive to produce. As such, only a limited number of each can be manufactured each year. However, if there is one thing which the countries of the world have learned as they have watched the progression of the Russia-Ukraine War, it is that there is a faster, cheaper and equally effective and deadly way to destroy your enemy. That is through overpowering your enemy with swarms consisting of hundreds of autonomous, lethal and often times one-way aerial drones.

What warring nations such as Ukraine, Russia, Iran and Israel have all discovered is that by using a multi-layered attack configuration comprised of hundreds of drones and missiles, they can even evade the best of missile defense shields such as Israel's so-called Iron Dome. Even if just a few drones manage to penetrate the shield, they can wreak a lot of havoc and destruction. Furthermore, in an open battlefield, these drones can likewise demoralize enemy troops as well. Not only that, but as I mentioned a moment ago, these devilish devices can be replaced and mass-produced a lot more quicker than any conventional weapons, and at a much cheaper price.

Aside from underwater weapons, aerial weapons and likewise conventional land weapons such as tanks and such, in this our modern day, new unseen threats have been devised by the wicked hearts of men. One of these -- which I will discuss in more detail in part two of this series -- concerns the tactic of deploying cyberattacks on your enemy which can result in all kinds of harm, such as the erasure of bank records, the disruption of public utilities, the complete termination of Internet services and other forms of mass communication, etc. In part two I will provide you with a specific example which is very close to home. That is to say, to MY island home on Guam.

But that is not all. Not happy with simply destroying each other on the face of the Earth, the warmongers have likewise begun to take their fighting up into Outer Space. As you may possibly have heard, certain countries -- including Russia, China, the United States and India -- have each developed a variety of ASATs, or anti-satellite weapons. Following is a list of these nations, along with the types of ASATs they have each developed. This information was provided by Google AI:

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• China: Operates satellites with robotic arms (such as Shijian-21) capable of maneuvering or damaging other satellites. China is also developing high-power microwave weapons to disrupt satellite electronics and ground-based laser systems.

• Russia: Actively develops and tests "co-orbital" antisatellite weapons, including maneuvering satellites that can act as "kamikaze" killers or deploy smaller, destructive satellites (the "nesting doll" systems). Russia is also suspected of developing a space-based nuclear ASAT weapon designed to cause widespread satellite disruption.

• United States: Focuses on both defensive and offensive counterspace capabilities, including on-orbit jamming systems and the X-37B robotic space plane, which is often considered a dual-use vehicle for surveillance or potential counterspace operations. The U.S. is also accelerating the deployment of electronic jammers.

• India: Successfully conducted a "Mission Shakti" direct-ascent missile test in 2019, demonstrating the capability to destroy satellites in low Earth orbit.

Key Takeaways:

• Co-Orbital Focus: China and Russia are considered to have an edge in on-orbit, co-orbital satellite killers (satellites targeting other satellites).

• Militarization of Space: The US Space Force notes that Russia and China have fielded operational space weapons to threaten US and allied space systems.

• Types of Weapons: Satellite killers include kinetic methods (ramming, nets, robotic arms), directed energy (lasers), and electromagnetic jammers.

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To give you an idea of exactly how dangerous these weapons are, please stop and think for a moment how much our modern, electronics-filled world depends on satellites. From global communications, to banking, to Internet connectivity, to GPS coordinates, and much more, our world could be brought to a complete standstill, and filled with utter confusion, if the right satellites are destroyed by an enemy nation.

Please go to part two for the continuation of this series.

⇒ Go To The Next Part . . .

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