"...series of powerful weather-driven waves struck a key U.S. military installation in the Marshall Islands Saturday night, damaging infrastructure...a large wave striking the Army’s dining hall, breaking down doors and knocking people down as water gushes into the building. ...while all "non-mission essential personnel" were evacuated to Kwajalein Island, the missile testing range headquarters, located about 40 miles to the south at the other end of the atoll. ...U.S. Army Garrison-Kwajalein Atoll supports the U.S. Space and Missile Defense Command’s Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site"
Reference: www.msn.com
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"...In the first test of its kind, the Pentagon on Monday carried out a “salvo” intercept of an unarmed missile soaring over the Pacific, using two interceptor missiles launched from underground silos in southern California.
Both interceptors zeroed in on the target..."
Reference: time.com
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"...On defense matters, the Marshall Islands’ strategic value to the United States no longer rests on the Pacific nuclear testing grounds but on Kwajalein, the largest of the Marshall atolls, which is home to the Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site. The 1,200 Americans who live on the base launch missiles, operate space weapons programs and track NASA research, supported by an annual budget of $182 million. About 900 Marshallese workers take a ferry to the base every day to support them..."
Reference: www.nytimes.com
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"...Kwajalein is home to USAKA (United States Army Kwajalein Atoll) and the premier missile facility, the Ronald Reagan Test Site (RTS)...."
Reference: www.yokwe.net .
"...Kwajalein has become the splash-down and intercept launch site for the THAAD missile program, a current spin-off of Reagan-era Star Wars "Bright Pebbles" strategic planning. ..."
Reference: www.escapeartist.com
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Will Obama Change Reagan Test Site Missile Mission? "...Marshall Islands leaders expressed concern about job losses at Kwajalein missile range during U.S.-Marshall Islands defense talks earlier this month in Majuro. But a bigger question for the Reagan Test Site is whether President-elect Barack Obama will dramatically reduce the level of missile defense work for this western Pacific base that has been the hub of America’s missile defense program since 1964...."
Reference: www.pacificmagazine.net .
