A serviceman walks past anti-aircraft defense mobile missile systems during the Keys to the Sky competition at the International Army Games 2017 at the Ashuluk shooting range outside Astrakhan, Russia, Aug. 5, 2017.
MARIANAS Visitors Authority Managing Director Christopher Concepcion said the reports of nuclear weapons or waste on Guam could affect tourism in the CNMI.
“Yes, we believe it will negatively affect tourism if Guam proceeds with any plan to store or dump nuclear waste in their lands and waters. We are too close geographically to Guam for it not to affect us in the future,” Concepcion said.
“We are concerned about the rapid militarization of the CNMI as it has some negative connotations in our source markets. The CNMI is seen as a clean and peaceful tourist destination. Any attempt by the U.S. or Guam governments to alter that is troubling,” he added.
“Our CNMI Constitution specifically prohibits the storage or disposal of nuclear weapons or waste in our Commonwealth so we must uphold that. The history of nuclear weapons began in Tinian as North Field was the launching point for the first and only atomic bombs ever deployed in warfare, so we are naturally more sensitive to this issue. We trust [that] our leadership on Capital Hill will protect the interests of the Commonwealth in the short- and long-term,” Concepcion added.
Recently, in a Radio New Zealand interview, Guam Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero said missile testing and housing nuclear weapons on the island will help maintain peace in the region.
An advocacy group from the CNMI, “Our Common Wealth 670,” opposes the Guam governor’s stance, and in a letter dated Aug. 16, asked CNMI Gov. Arnold I. Palacios to speak out against “the introduction of nuclear weapons, and storage and waste in our region of the world, let alone within our Marianas archipelago and surrounding waters.”
In an interview on Monday, Palacios said he had not seen the letter from Our Common Wealth 670.
“Guam is a defense community [and] very heavily in facilities and installations,” he said. “Apra Harbor, the Naval Base and Anderson Air Force Base…. They are [also] building a new Marine Corps campus, a big one at that. I cannot be specific about [it],” Palacios said.
Asked whether he is “okay” with nuclear weapons stored close to the CNMI, Palacios said, “Nobody, let me be clear, nobody, not…any community in the world should not be concerned about that, but the fact of the matter, we are in a different world environment today, and so…how do we address that? We look to our Department of Defense to make sure that a lot of the concerns are mitigated,” he added.
“I’m not fully aware of what’s going on with the nuclear weapons…being transported in Guam or what the governor of Guam’s statement was,” he said.
