Accordingly, I was very disappointed that the Base Realignment and Closure Commission has decided to consider the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard as a possible candidate for closure or realignment. Pearl Harbor is of critical importance to the Navy and our nation's security, ensuring that the Pacific Fleet is able to respond rapidly to crises in the Asia-Pacific region.

Yet today we are at a very critical juncture in the history of our shipyard. This is a matter to be taken most seriously. In fact, some have compared it to a bomb scare, for which we must respond accordingly. United and focused.

For this reason, I returned to Hawai'i for less than 24 hours to visit the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard on Thursday to meet with the senior leadership of the shipyard and the Pacific Fleet, and to convey my support to the work force.

I was overwhelmed by the approximately 3,000 workers who came out to hear the commander and me share what we knew of the base-closure process. I was also honored to share my thoughts on the importance of Pearl Harbor to our national security posture in the Pacific, as well as to convey to our workers that I and the rest of the Hawai'i congressional delegation will do everything we can to keep the shipyard from being closed.

We are a team. We must band together, lean forward and clearly reaffirm and demonstrate our shipyard's high military value.

On July 18, the commission will receive testimony from the Defense Department justifying its recommendation to close the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard instead of Pearl Harbor.

On July 19, the commission will vote on whether to formally consider Pearl Harbor for closure. If seven of the nine commissioners agree to add Pearl Harbor for consideration, then at least two commissioners will visit the shipyard and make their recommendation to the commission.

The commission will make its final recommendations on which bases to close or realign during the week of Aug. 22.

I am confident the Navy will remind the commission of the potential dangers in the Asia-Pacific region. Six of the world's largest militaries are in Asia, including North Korea, China, Vietnam and India. We know that the North Koreans have more than a million men in their military. They have nuclear weapons and are developing ballistic missiles to threaten their neighbors and, potentially, the United States.

Terrorism is flourishing in Asia. We face serious challenges from radical groups, such as Abu Sayyaf in the Philippines and the Jemaah Islamiya forces in Indonesia.

But of greatest concern is the potential adversary we could face in China. It is rapidly building its naval forces, and in the coming years is likely to garner superpower status and could pose a serious threat to the region. The counterbalance to Chinese expansion rests with the forces of the Pacific Command.

The vastness of the Pacific has always made it an area where the Navy was the key power, with the ships of the Pacific Fleet serving as the tools to maintain peace and stability. Pearl Harbor supports 12 surface ships and 17 submarines.

Its primary mission is to respond to the emergent and voyage needs of the fleet, including, as an example, repairs to the USS San Francisco following its accident. As we increase our forces in Hawai'i and the region, the importance of Pearl Harbor will only continue to grow.

I have been informed that the commission has directly or indirectly pit Pearl Harbor against the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. The Portsmouth decision should be unrelated to the necessity for the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard.

If even Portsmouth were to remain open, the Navy would still need Pearl Harbor to provide the repair and maintenance support for the Pacific Fleet. One could simply not sail a ship back to the East Coast for maintenance.

It makes no financial or common sense to uproot the crews and their families to send the ships to the Mainland. And it would certainly make no sense to sail them all the way through the Panama Canal, then up to New Hampshire to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard for maintenance.

We should not have to "deploy" our ships to have them maintained. While the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard may be a great facility, it simply cannot replace the full-service shipyard that is Pearl Harbor.

Can we improve our efficiencies? Of course we can.

I am confident that our more than 5,000 employees will be redoubling their efforts. We have a younger work force, with more than 900 new workers through our apprentice program who have had to fill some pretty experienced shoes.

I have no doubt that they will. I am proud of their innovations with the private sector. I am proud of their efforts to increase productivity and save money.

The Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard is a part of the fabric of our Hawai'i community. Few could even imagine a Hawai'i without Pearl Harbor.

Our business and community leaders have already begun to rally support as we work together to devise a targeted, fact-based strategy to support the Navy's position, and to stand with our Pearl Harbor workers who turn the wrenches and care for the ships and submarines with a quality of workmanship that Pearl Harbor has always been known for.

There should be no doubt in minds of the Base Realignment and Closure Commission that Pearl Harbor should not be closed.