The North Korea issue may be calming down, with its leader appearing to be holding off on an imminent launch of missiles into waters near Guam, but Gov. Ralph DLG Torres continues to monitor the situation.<\/p>\n
In a statement to Saipan Tribune, the Torres administration assured that the Commonwealth government \u201cwill continue to monitor the situation as it develops.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy administration, through the Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, just released fact sheets and tips in the chance that a shelter-in-place is necessary,\u201d Torres said in the statement.<\/p>\n
\u201cRegardless of any change in threat level, we are committed to ensuring the safety and protection of everyone who calls these islands home. As we continue to monitor the ongoing events, we will continue to be responsive and transparent on any new information from Guam and the Department of Defense,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
The high tension in the region prompted the local Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management yesterday to disseminate information on how to take \u201cshelter in place,\u201d including basic medical and survival kits for families.<\/p>\n
For more information, visit the HSEM website at www.cnmihsem.gov.mp or call 237-8000 or 664-8000.<\/p>\n
In yesterday\u2019s daily briefing on the North Korean threat, Guam Lt. Gov. Ray Tenorio said that based on the Guam government\u2019s assessments, there were no indication that the island would be facing a missile attack \u201cin the near future or in the distant future.\u201d<\/p>\n
North Korea\u2019s state news agency KCNA reported earlier in the day that leader Kim Jong Un had examined plans for a launch. It quoted Kim as saying he would watch what he called the \u201cfoolish and stupid conduct of the Yankees\u201d a little more before deciding whether to order a test.<\/p>\n
Tenorio said \u201cwe\u2019re happy that he has taken a look at their plans\u201d and appears to be holding off on a launch.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is no change to our threat assessment and we operating as usual,\u201d said Tenorio, adding that the government and the tourism on the island continues to grow \u201cwithout major changes in our forecast.\u201d<\/p>\n
At a Guam Visitors Bureau membership meeting, yesterday GVB president and CEO Nathan Denight said the latest numbers show that Guam\u2019s tourism was up 5 percent despite the North Korean threats against the island.<\/p>\n
Guam Homeland Security adviser George Charfauros Jr. echoed the unchanged threat assessment.<\/p>\n
Tenorio said they were in communication with Guam Homeland Security Office as well as the Joint Region Marianas.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe trust that our country, including our President\u2019s assertion to protect our island, are going to be held to his word,\u201d said Tenorio.<\/p>\n
Guam Delegate Madeleine Z. Bordallo (D-GU) said in a statement yesterday that she was \u201cheartened by reports that North Korea has decided, for now, to walk back their threats of an imminent attack on or around Guam.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to her statement, U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis and U.S. General Joseph Dunford\u2019s \u201cfirm statements\u201d sent a clear message to North Korea: Attacks toward Guam is an act of war.<\/p>\n
According to news reports, Mattis said that if North Korea fires a missile toward the U.S., it would \u201cescalate into war very quickly.\u201d It was also reported that Mattis stressed that should a missile be fired toward Guam or the U.S., \u201cwe\u2019ll take it out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Along with the firm statements by U.S. officials, Bordallo stressed that this was Trump\u2019s way of \u201csignaling his commitment to Guam\u2019s defense.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile I remain confident that our island is safe and well-protected, I hope that all parties will work to further de-escalate tensions and ensure stability in the region.\u201d <\/p>\n
Dozens held signs and waved Guam\u2019s flag during a rally for peace in the U.S. territory. <\/p>\n
Participants chanted \u201cPeace, not war, that\u2019s what our island is for.\u201d Demonstrators sang Guam\u2019s hymn and blew kulo or shell trumpets. <\/p>\n
Melvin Won Pat-Borja says many people in the community are frustrated, scared and worried. The 35-year-old says it\u2019s not a good feeling to have your life threatened. (With AP)<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The North Korea issue may be calming down, with its leader appearing to be holding…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[900],"tags":[17892,4628,17946,8116],"class_list":["post-258208","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-featured","tag-guam-homeland-security","tag-guam-lt","tag-north-korea-attacks","tag-north-korean"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/258208","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/22"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=258208"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/258208\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=258208"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=258208"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=258208"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}