By Pacific Island Times News Staff
The U.S. Navy's USS Nevada, ballistic-missile submarine, made a quiet appearance at the Naval base on Guam over the weekend.
According to a brief press release posted on the Navy's website, USS Nevada arrived at Apra Harbor on Jan. 15. "This port visit to Guam reflects the United States’ commitment to the Indo-Pacific region, and complements the many exercises, operations, training, and military cooperation activities conducted by Strategic Forces to ensure they are available and ready to operate around the globe at any time," the Navy said.
Homeported in Naval Base Kitsap, Wash., USS Nevada is an Ohio-class ballistic-missile submarine. It is an undetectable launch platform for submarine-launched ballistic missiles, providing the United States with its most survivable leg of the nuclear triad, according to the Navy's press release.
USS Nevada departed its homeport on Dec. 16, 2021 for a scheduled strategic deterrence patrol, the Navy said.
According to a CNN report, this was the first visit of a ballistic missile submarine to Guam since 2016 and only the second announced visit since the 1980s.
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The ship is armed with up to 20 Trident II D-5 ballistic missiles, according to the Navy. It has a complement of 15 officers and 140 enlisted sailors.
"It sends a message -- intended or not: we can park 100-odd nuclear warheads on your doorstep and you won't even know it or be able to do much about it. And the reverse isn't true and won't be for a good while," CNN quoted Thomas Shugart, a former US Navy submarine captain, as saying.
Shugart is now an analyst at the Center for a New American Security
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