According to Commerce Secretary Michael Ada, the government has been “working quietly on its approach to the military buildup in a way that builds partnership with our neighbors in Guam” and the U.S. Department of Defense, or DoD.
He said the primary purpose of the report was to provide the CNMI with direction on what the island could provide the DoD in terms of resources.
“We knew that we would have a tough time competing with Guam, so we took the approach that we should try to look for areas of DoD needs which provided a natural fit with our resources,” he said.
Last month, Commerce presented a 72-page report on how the islands could utilize their natural resources to help and benefit from the military buildup on Guam.
Commerce gave members of the community three weeks to submit their comments which will be taken into consideration in finalizing the draft.
The final document will be highlighted in the military symposium on Wednesday at the Saipan World Resort.
In a press release, Commerce said the document was presented to different Defense personnel for review.
Commerce said it received positive feedback.
The report provides the CNMI with “talking points” that speak directly to known Defense needs.
The document was prepared by Project Management Operations LLC and was paid for by the U.S. Office of Insular Affairs.
Gov. Benigno R. Fitial, in a press release, said the planning document “is the first CNMI produced document which speaks directly to the military buildup. While much has been said about what is going to happen, we took the approach of providing solutions to the needs of the Department of Defense.”
