In this US Air Force image obtained from the US Defense Department, two US Air Force B-1B Lancers prepare to take off from Andersen Air Force Base, Guam. 10 October 2017 Photo: AFP Photo / US Air Force / Staff Sgt. Joshua Smoot
Guam's Congress is asking the US Defence Department to release the unclassified version of an independent assessment of the integrated air and missile defence system it is proposing.
Guamanians seek access to an unclassified report
The report by Massachusetts Institute of Technology's (MIT) Lincoln Lab looks at the 360-degree defence system as well as the impacts of long-term missile testing the military plans to carry out in the US territory.
On 14 July, Speaker Therese Terlaje's Resolution 433-37 requests access to the full unclassified version of the report.
Last week, Pacific Daily Times reported Terlaje saying that the information was needed "ahead of the deadline for public comment on a 378-page environmental assessment", which has been extended from 2 July to 2 August.
Pacific Center for Island Security chair Robert Underwood testified during the hearing echoing the call for transparency.
The president of the University of Guam and former US congressman Robert Underwood. Photo: Supplied / University of Guam
"Guam legislature has introduced a resolution which is asking for the release of a report issued by Lincoln Lab of MIT and this was a report that was worked on since last year. They are suppose to submit it to the Pentagon in the US Spring this year," he said.
Underwood is calling on the military for transparency so Guamanians can understand the military's long-term plans for the territory.
He said it is in the public interest to release the report to the people of Guam.
"In order for us to assess the ongoing activities of the military it is absolutely critical that there be some transparency. This is supposed to be an external review and of course the only way that you can hold people accountable is if you have some type of transparency."
RNZ Pacific has contacted MIT Lincoln Lab and the US Military for comment.