DOD establishes joint task force on Guam, region’s first 2-star command in decades
By ALEX WILSON STARS AND STRIPES •
June 15, 2024
The Department of Defense established a new senior command on Guam on Friday as it moves to counter China’s growing influence in the region. Joint Task Force-Micronesia, headquartered on Nimitz Hill, is the newest command on the 212-square-mile island that has increasingly become the U.S. military’s Indo-Pacific stronghold.
The task force is expected to coordinate defenses, oversee humanitarian missions and act as a direct conduit for U.S. Indo-Pacific Command. Rear Adm. Gregory Huffman, formerly the commander of Joint Region Marianas, stepped in as the task force’s inaugural leader during a Friday ceremony at Andersen Air Force Base.
The occasion marked the establishment of the first two-star command in the region in over 70 years, according to a Friday news release from the task force. The task force assumes some broader regional responsibilities from the existing Joint Region Marianas, commanded by Rear Adm. Brent DeVore, with which it shares a headquarters.
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https://www.stripes.com/theaters/asia_pacific/2024-06-14/guam-joint-task-force-micronesia-14186702.htmlSource - Stars and Stripes