Final Report of the 2013 GUASA Roundtable

The Final Report of the GUASA Roundtable, held September 5-6, 2013 is now available in digital pdf format at this link.

GUASA again thanks Carl Ford, Paul Giarra, and Bob Mihalik for their work in compiling, reporting and editing the report of the discussions and presentations of the conference.

Print copies will be made available as soon as print arrangements and costings are finalized. Please contact GUASA at GuamRoundTable@gmail.com for more information.

HASC upping oversight of rebalance to maintain focus

Congress Plans Series of Asia Pacific Oversight Hearings October 30, 2013

Almost two years after the Obama administration released a new “strategic guidance” that prioritized a shift of diplomatic and military focus to the Asia-Pacific region, Capitol Hill is finally taking notice.

And unlike the crippling partisan gridlock that makes budgets unpassable and recently shut down the federal government, legislators are approaching the issue in a bipartisan fashion. A group of Democratic and Republican members of the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) announced on Oct. 29 that the committee is kicking off what they’re calling the “Asia Pacific Oversight Series” to start digging into the White House’s strategic rebalance, and how Congress can provide oversight.

The group of lawmakers said that between now and early 2014 they’ll hold at least five hearings on economic security and partner capacity-building efforts in the region.

“The president wanted to shift to the Pacific, and we have to get out ahead of it” Rep. Buck McKeon, the Republican HASC chairman, told reporters. The top Democrat on the committee, Rep. Adam Smith, cautioned that although China is a major global power and that almost anything the United States does in the region will be viewed through the lens of US/Chinese strategic competition, the effort isn’t all about China.

The committee will focus mainly on providing oversight on the Obama administration’s progress in building partner capacity and supporting allies though joint military training activities. “We want to build as strong an alliance system as we can, and about China, I think we need to view them as a partner as well,” Smith said. We need to work together.” The Republican chairman of the seapower and projection forces subcommittee, Rep. Randy Forbes, added, “the biggest thing for us is presence. If we have presence there” the entire region is more stable.

Forbes was also critical of the rollout of the AirSeaBattle concept, which focuses on naval and air power and which some have misinterpreted as a plan for war with China. “There was a kind of throwing out of that concept but not really an education process about what that meant,” he said.

He also lamented that Washington “is losing its ability to develop long-term strategies,” and that he hopes the HASC will be able to focus the administration’s thinking on how to operate in the Pacific region. Over the long term, “what you have to measure is not just what you think the threats are going to be” but also measure the capabilities that our allies and competitors will have in 10 or 20 years, he said. “And that’s what I think we’re not doing.”

Time For Congress To Rebalance On Asia-Pacific: Reps. Forbes & Hanabusa

Rep. Colleen Hanabusa, a respected Democrat from Hawaii with a strong parochial and strategic interest in the topic, joins Forbes to press the call for more congressional focus on one of the fundamental strategic issues with which our country is grappling.

we believe the time has come for Congress to play a leading role in shifting our attention towards the long-range trends that stand to affect our security interests. Primary among these are the shifting security dynamics that have been occurring across the Asia-Pacific region. More specifically, we feel the rise of Chinese military modernization, and the geostrategic impact this trend stands to have on our friends, allies and trading partners throughout the region, calls for a thorough oversight effort by the House Armed Services Committee.

The Obama Administration acknowledged the need for our government to pay closer attention to the Asia-Pacific two years ago with its stated policy to begin to shift the nation’s attention to the region. However, we feel the Congress has been slow to conduct a ‘rebalance’ of its own. This series aims to stimulate such a process, not only because the Obama Administration has not fully supported its rhetoric with resources, but because we know this policy will only be successful with strong congressional input and support.

At its core, this series will seek to enhance an understanding of Asia-Pacific security issues for both members of Congress and the general public. To be successful, we will rely on government witnesses and some of the best independent thinkers across the country to increase our understanding of the military, economic, and political trends affecting the long-term security outlook in the region.

In addition to education and oversight, we aim to use this series to play a leading role in encouraging the Obama Administration to build a multifaceted strategy for Asia-Pacific. For instance, we recently sent a letter to National Security Advisor Susan Rice urging her to conduct a formal, interagency strategy review for the Asia-Pacific. We believe an Asia-Pacific Strategy Review is required not only so that departments and agencies across the federal government can have the authority to think and act creatively within a robust interagency system, but also to communicate to Congress the breadth of resources that will be required to implement this strategy.

First, we acknowledge that Congress has an important role to play across the spectrum when it comes to policy in the Asia-Pacific, including trade policy, diplomatic outreach, alliance management, and sustaining our defense posture and engagement. But given our position as members of the House Armed Services Committee, we have chosen to focus on the balance of military power and questions related to maintaining stability in the region.

Second, this series is about understanding the broad security dynamics of the region — including everything from our alliances, to maritime disputes, to the impact of the China’s military modernization over the last 15 years – and how our government should look to best posture itself to respond in the years ahead. This is not about pushing any one perspective that China is an enemy or threat to the United States. To the contrary, we believe that while there are elements of the U.S.-China relationship that are competitive, there are also many opportunities for cooperation we should explore.

Amongst a tide of recent political turmoil, we are proud to be able to work together on this effort. Although it is often said, it is worth repeating here: U.S. policy towards Asia-Pacific remains a truly bipartisan effort. We look to extend this positive story as our Nation continues the task of building a durable diplomatic, economic, and security architecture across the Asia-Pacific region.

Comparing the US-Japan and US-ROK Joint Consultative Agreements

The US-Japan Joint Consultative Agreement is at this link.

The US-ROK Joint Consultative Agreement is at this link.

Rebalancing Alliances: The Forgotten Side of the US Pivot

In the past two days, the United States has released important alliance statements with two of its most prominent East Asian partners. The first followed the annual meeting of the U.S.-Japan Security Consultative Committee; the second the U.S.-ROK Security Consultative Meeting.

Read more at the article link.

Link to Roundtable presentation visuals

We now have a link to all the power point and other visuals used by the presenters at the Roundtable on September 5 and 6, 2013. Click here.

Link to Roundtable photos

Pictures taken in the conference hall during the Roundtable are available to view and download here

If anything further becomes available for public distribution, we will post it.

Thanks again to all the participants, attendees, organizers, donors and our sponsors:

United Airlines, Bank of Hawaii, Hawaiian Rock Products, Docomo Pacific, Micro Black Construction, GTA, J&G, Kokuba Gumi Co, Ltd, Triple J Enterprises, Money Resources, Inc., East-West Rental Center, Law Offices of Gumataotao & Pole, Deloitte (Guam), ASC Corporation, Frontier Supplies, SSAM Shuttle, Watts, GFS Group, Select Care, Kloppenberg Enterprises, Outrigger Guam Resort, and Cassidy's Insurance.

Guam Roundtable concludes succesful event

The Guam Roundtable concluded Friday, 6 September, with a full house in attendance. You can read the various reports of the Roundtable here.

Guam Congresswoman Madeleine Z. Bordallo gave the keynote address on Thursday, and you can read it here.

Now the hard work of preparing an edited transcript of the Roundtable presentations and discussions will begin. We will post a notice of its availability when it is ready for prime time, hopefully before the end of this calendar year. And, of course, if anything related comes up, we will post that as well.

Congratulations to all who participated, attended and made this happen, including especially our sponsors:

as well as our GUASA Roundtable team:

Front, left to right: Carl2, Juan Carlos, Paul, and Gerry

Back, left to right: Carl1, Joe, and John

Seating is limited, and filling up quickly

The September 5 and 6 Guam Roundtable has limited seating, only about 100 places, and we are now over 80% booked out.

Registrations are first come, first served, and will be closed once capacity is full.  

Registration instruction is provided in the right side bar.