With the rise of China and her global ambitions, the military importance of Guam in the Indo-Pacific theater has become apparent. The force levels on the island had drawn down from a peak of about 26,000 at the height of the Vietnam War to a tenth of that—just 2,500 people in the early 2000s.<p><p>https://www.marinelink.com/news/strategically-located-guams-defense-505297</p></p>