Fargo wants
carrier in HawaiiThe Pacific commander tells
a gathering that the relocation
would aid the war on terrorism
KAWAIHAE, Hawaii >> Adm. Thomas Fargo, the Honolulu-based commander of U.S. Pacific Forces, said that he supports the permanent relocation of an aircraft carrier to Pearl Harbor.
Speaking at the 31st annual Japan-Hawaii Economic Council meeting yesterday, Fargo said moving a carrier from the continental United States to Hawaii would support the war on terrorism and the stabilization of the Pacific-Indian Ocean region.
On Oct. 1, Adm. Walter F. Doran, the Pacific Fleet commander, said a carrier may be moved to Hawaii or Guam so the Navy could respond more quickly to a crisis in North Korea or elsewhere in the Asia-Pacific region.
A 1998 study by the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii estimated a carrier home-ported in Honolulu would create 4,200 jobs and have a $375 million annual economic impact.
A carrier and its accompanying air wing typically have 5,500 crew members. They would also bring thousands of family members and support personnel with them.
Fargo told the gathering of 150 government, military and business leaders that terrorism and North Korea are the primary concerns of the U.S. military.
"The potential for weapons of mass destruction (from North Korea's nuclear-weapons program) falling into the hands of terrorists, who would then wreak great destruction on the U.S. with no warning, has forced a rethinking of military strategy," Fargo said.
Charles Morrison, president of the Honolulu-based East-West Center, said terrorism has remade the world.
"This is not a world of our making, but a world made by terrorists," Morrison said. "Eight or nine years ago, we wouldn't have been having these discussions on security."
On another matter, Minoru Makihara, chairman of Mitsubishi Corp., spoke of the collapse of Japan's economy over the past 12 years.
"But we think the economy is turning the corner," Makihara said.
That would be good news for Hawaii's principle industry, tourism, which supports about two-thirds of the state's economy.
Japanese tourists to Hawaii numbered 1.8 million in 2002, about 70 percent off the peak. Visitors from Japan tend to spend $100 more per person per day while in Hawaii than visitors from the U.S. mainland, according to state statistics.
Hawaii County Mayor Harry Kim said tourism serves a higher mission that mere economic gain.
Unlike governments, tourism can bring people together face to face, helping to achieve the goal of world peace, he said.
Hawaii is a good model of how Americans of diverse backgrounds can work together, Kim said.
"We don't look at Japan, China, Korea, the Philippines as separate countries," he said. "Because many of us come from these countries, we look on them as family."
