Guam and the North Korea Situation

Unpingco seeks military insight into North Korea situation

by Sonya Artero, http://www.kuam.com, June 23, 2006

U.S. officials are now reporting that current satellite images reveal booster rockets being loaded onto a launch pad and fuel tanks being fitted to a North Korean missile launch site. Whether the launch is imminent, the United States is joining Japan in a sharp response should the test be given the go-ahead. As to how both the Navy and Air Force installations on Guam are preparing, local military officials would not comment because of its sensitive nature.

The Navy would only refer KUAM News to a telephone number to the Office of the Secretary of Defense, a number no one answered. To help us determine how Guam could better prepare, should a missile be shot down in the air over or near Guam, Senator Tony Unpingco, whose purview includes military affairs, offered speculation. In his deep concern, Senator Unpingco shot out an emergency letter to commander of Naval Forces Marianas Rear Admiral Charles Leidig, pleading that he reveal what measures the military is taking to protect the island and its people.

What's more Unpingco also requests the Navy reveal what precautions, if any islanders should take.

In the meantime officials from Washington are warning Pyongyang, the capital city of North Korea, against launching their missile. However, there has been no response. The missile test is expected to involve a Taepodong-2 missile, with an estimated range that can reach parts of Alaska as well as Asia and Russia. Although North Korea lacks an operational missile that can hit the Continental United States, a recent report noted that after Korea fired a similar missile over Japan last year, that missile fell into the Pacific Ocean.

Speaking at the annual European Summit in Australia, President George W. Bush expressed his concern, saying, "It makes people nervous when non-transparent regimes who have announced they have nuclear warheads start firing missiles."

In the meantime, about 1,000 people, including army veterans and activists, have staged a rally in Seoul, condemning the missile threat.