Red Hill crisis casts shadow on RIMPAC exercises set to begin in Hawaii
TL;DR - Warships from 26 countries are arriving in the Hawaiian Islands for the biennial Rim of the Pacific exercise, the world’s largest recurring naval war game.
About 25,000 military personnel will participate in RIMPAC 2022, which kicks off Wednesday and will run through Aug. 4, with 38 surface ships, four submarines and more than 170 aircraft. The exercise, hosted by the Hawaii-based U.S. Pacific Fleet, comes at a time of increased global conflict and diplomatic tensions.
It also comes as relations between Hawaii residents and Navy commanders have been severely strained after jet fuel stored at the Navy’s underground Red Hill fuel storage facility spilled in November into the service’s water system that serves 93,000 Oahu residents.
June 27, 2022: Red Hill crisis casts shadow on RIMPAC exercises set to begin in Hawaii, Honolulu Star-Advertiser