Philippines Urges Restraint Amid North Korea Threat to Attack Guam

Philippine officials on Monday called on the United States and North Korean leaders to calm themselves and start diplomatic talks amid threats of a possible missile strike from Pyongyang targeting Guam, a tiny American territory in the Pacific that hosts tens of thousands of Filipinos.

Presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella called on both parties to desist from threats and military action and to avoid sabre-rattling to ease the tension.

“And we enjoin all sides to start talks, which should be greatly facilitated by an end to missile test and attack threats,” Abella said.

Earlier, North Korea announced it was considering firing missiles at Guam following criticism from Washington, which has challenged its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.

The escalation of the threat occurred just days after the U.S. and North Korea attended a top-level security forum in Manila where the Philippines as this year’s chairman of the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) expressed concern over Pyongyang’s recent weapons tests.

The Philippines and the nine other ASEAN nations have diplomatic ties with North Korea. Five maintain embassies there.

The U.S. has led calls for Pyongyang to be isolated and called on the hermit kingdom to be suspended from the ASEAN Regional Forum, a group of 27 nations including the 10 ASEAN members and North Korea.

North Korea’s top diplomat Ri Yong Ho responded that he was not prepared to talk with his South Korean counterpart and accused the U.S. of bullying, saying his country was “ready to retaliate.”

Abella said the Philippine embassy in Guam has instituted a contingency plan should the security situation deteriorate beyond rhetoric and erupt into a full-blown military conflict. No details were released about the plan.

“We ask all Filipinos in Guam and Korea and their families here to inform (the foreign office) or our consular officials of their whereabouts,” Abella said.

Guam, more than 2,600 kilometers (1,600 miles) from the Philippines, is home to about 42,000 Filipinos. Another 65,000 are in South Korea.

The Philippines’ top diplomats in Seoul and in Guam “have given their assurances that their respective contingency plans” have been set in motion, the Department of Foreign Affairs said.