US military remains committed to Asia

HONOLULU – Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Tuesday said the US military will preserve its presence in the Pacific despite possible Pentagon budget cuts.

Gates, speaking during a stop in Hawaii, said he planned to tell a security conference in Singapore this week that budget pressures would not alter Washington’s role in Asia.

“The critical message is that even as we look at potential budget reductions, there is no slackening of the US commitment to our presence in Asia,” Gates told reporters near the Pearl Harbor memorial.

“We are a Pacific nation, we will remain a Pacific nation, we will remain engaged,” he said. “And we will continue to build relationships with friends, partners and allies in Asia.”

During his one day visit to Honolulu, Gates toured the battleship USS Missouri, which served as the site of the Japanese surrender that ended World War II on September 2, 1945.

At this week’s Singapore defense summit organized by the International Institute of Strategic Studies, Gates will seek to reassure Asian allies who are anxious that Washington will pull back from the region just as China’s military adopts an increasingly assertive posture, defense officials said.

Gates departs Wednesday for Singapore, and will hold a series of meetings Friday with his regional counterparts — including from China and Japan — before delivering a speech to the conference on Saturday.