Inouye: U.S. must stay in Pacific Rim.

• Author: Book, Elizabeth G.
• Position: Washington Pulse - Senator Daniel K. Inouye - Brief Article

During the past six months, Sen. Daniel K Inouye, D-Hawaii, traveled to places like Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, China, the Philippines and Singapore. The underlying theme in every trip, he said, was "the problem of terrorism."

Terrorism "will be with us for generations to come," Inouye said at the National Defense Industrial Association's annual awards dinner. He was the recipient of the association's 2002 Dwight D. Eisenhower award, for his contributions to the U.S. national security. Inouye currently is the chairman of the Senate's defense appropriations subcommittee.

A supporter of U.S. military presence around the globe, Inouye stressed that it is now more important than ever for U.S. forces to remain deployed in the Pacific Rim region. "Every country in the Pacific Rim is hoping we won't leave that area," he said. An obvious example is the new...