US to boost Guam defenses

By Wu Che-yu and Jonathan Chin / Staff writers Add TT as Preferred Source The US Army is to establish a new air defense battalion in Guam in October as the US military continues to improve defenses on the strategic western Pacific island, defense Web site TWZ reported on Monday.The US territory of Guam, along with islands farther east in the Pacific — including Palau, the Marianas and the Carolines — are often referred to as the Second Island Chain, while the area from Japan through Taiwan, the northern Philippines and Borneo is called the First Island Chain.The new unit would be designated the 3rd Battalion, 43rd Air Defense Artillery Regiment and armed with Patriot air defense missiles and Enduring Shield, low-tier systems that fire AIM-9X Sidewinder missiles, TWZ reported. A US Army Ter