Recently, the war in the Middle East is still hot, but the United States has turned its attention to real competitors. It has been learned that the United States, together with Japan and Australia, held a large-scale joint air exercise in the Guam region of the western Pacific, which was named "Confronting the North." The exercise, which lasted from 12 to 28 February, involved 100 military aircraft of all types and 2,000 military personnel from the three countries. The exercise covered a wide range of subjects, from counter-air raids to in-depth long-range strike missions to humanitarian relief. The Pentagon said the exercise was aimed at strengthening "seamless cooperation" between the United States and its allies in an international crisis, and military experts noted that the gathering of hundreds of advanced warplanes in Guam for high-intensity combat readiness drills is undoubtedly the latest warning to a hypothetical enemy in the vicinity, and countries should be highly vigilant.
It has been learned that the exercise brought together the top air forces of the United States, Japan, and Australia. The United States dispatched F-22 and F-35 stealth fighters, F-16C/D, F-15C/D, F/A-18C/D fighter jets, and RQ-4 Global Hawk drones. At the same time, Japan's Self-Defense Forces sent F-15J and F-2 fighter jets, while Australia dispatched F/A-18 and E/A-18G electronic warfare aircraft. What is particularly noteworthy is that the United States has also dispatched F-16C/D fighters from Alaska that imitate the camouflage of Russia and other countries to play the role of an imaginary enemy. In addition, Andersen Air Force Base in Guam is also home to B-1B, B-2A and B-52H strategic bombers, and although the details have not been disclosed, it can be confirmed that American B-52H bombers are also involved in the exercises.
The "Confront the North" military exercise began in 1978 as a bilateral exercise between the United States and Japan, and the main target was the imaginary enemy of the Soviet Union. With the end of the Cold War, the location of the exercise gradually moved south, and since 1999, the annual routine military exercise has been transferred to Guam, a US military base, and the number of participating countries has gradually increased to the United States, Japan, and Australia. The Guam region is vital to the U.S. strategy in the Western Pacific, as U.S. warplanes and bombers take off from here and can fly non-stop to Southeast Asia or East Asia to carry out long-range strike missions. This exercise once again shows that the US military's combat readiness posture in the Asia-Pacific region has not diminished in the slightest, and it is also the latest warning of potential threats. However, experts note that while Guam is strategically critical for the United States and its allies in wartime, it is equally incapable of resting under the threat of a new generation of intermediate-range ballistic missiles. The range of these missiles already covers the second island chain and, of course, Guam. In addition, H-6K bombers carrying long-range air-launched cruise missiles are also capable of striking Andersen Air Force Base in Guam during long-range raids. Therefore, once the conflict breaks out, the US military and its allies will face the "baptism" of various missiles, and the situation will be very serious.