According to a report cited in this ArmyTimes article Guam and the North Marianas Islands are “ready made” staging grounds for terror attacks on U.S. interests. The 2002 report this information is based on resurfaced as part of a probe relating to the Abramoff influence peddling scandal which led to the conviction of Mark Zacharies, a former cabinet official for Northern Marianas.

The report cites lax immigration policies and the influence of Japanese, Russian and Chinese organized crime syndicates as causing grave concern over the islands security. Jack Abramoff is purported to have buried the report, presumably to protect business interest he had a stake in who use the lax immigration policies to hire cheap labor.

Al-Qaeda has already been active in Guam.