Torres: Summit should stabilize region

Gov. Ralph DLG Torres is hopeful the historic meeting between President Donald J. Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un would ease tensions in the Pacific and stabilize peace in the region.

Trump briefly stopped over at Guam’s Andersen Air Force Base at around 2am yesterday as Air Force One was refueled after a one-day summit meeting at Sentosa in Singapore.

Guam Gov. Eddie Calvo met with Trump aboard Air Force One.

Pacific Daily News earlier quoted the U.S. President as saying that he plans to no longer allow bombers at the Andersen base to participate in war games in the Korean peninsula.

Torres said Trump has been criticized since becoming President but this hasn’t stopped the former businessman from performing his duties.

“A lot of criticism had been done with Trump since he got into the position as our President and criticisms continue against him. He’s the only President that signed an executive order to take care of our veterans. [The EO is] to allow veterans to go to any doctor,” said Torres.

But the historic meeting with Kim, the first by any sitting U.S. President, is the most important thing that Trump has managed to accomplish in his second year as commander-in-chief of the world’s most powerful nation, Torres said. “Look at what he has done with North Korea. Now they have an agreement, a relationship that would really create peace.”

The Pacific, particularly in Micronesia, would be one of the beneficiaries of this historic meeting if it does result in peace, as it would ease the tension in the region since North Korea announced plans to develop nuclear weapons.

North Korea has threatened to attack Guam using its alleged nuclear weapons, fanning tensions in the Korean peninsula and its already volatile relationship with the United States and its allies in the region.

The meeting, what could be the first of a series, could also be a step toward the denuclearization of North Korea and a possible reunification with the South. Last April, Kim also met with South Korean President Moon Jae-in where both leaders stepped on each other’s side of the demilitarized zone.

“It [the meeting] is probably more important in our side of the world. We’ve seen some threats in the last couple of years, and I think those threats should no longer be part of our day-to-day living. Now that there’s stability and peace…in our region, it is a good thing for all of us,” added Torres.