HAGATNA, Guam (AP) — C.J. Urquico has lived on Guam for 19 years so he's used to a military backdrop to everyday life. Navy ships visit, Air Force jets fly overhead and war games are played off the Pacific island's shores.
There soon will be another military element in this U.S. territory — a defense system will be installed to shoot down incoming missiles and warheads. Its deployment comes amid intensifying threats from North Korea, which recently listed Guam among its targets for a nuclear attack on the United States.
That Guam is a named player in a nuclear showdown is striking for an island known for its slow pace and laid-back attitudes.
"The worst thing that can happen is we allow it to terrorize us," said Urquico, a 36-year-old creative director for a telecommunications company. And while "there's no real sinister feeling in the air," he added: "People are definitely paying attention. I mean, how many times do we ever trend on Twitter?"
The remote tropical island is no stranger to international conflict: the island's waters are a graveyard for rusting tanks from World War II and the oldest residents remember living under Japanese occupation. But residents say North Korea's threat isn't even attracting as much concern as a seasonal typhoon.
"Our sales have been pretty steady," said Michael Benito, general manager at Payless Supermarket in Tamuning on the west side of the island, explaining that there hasn't been a rush to buy canned goods like Spam and corned beef. "There hasn't been any bump in sales."
