DFA: No imminent threat in Korean Peninsula



ABS-CBNnews.com
Posted at 04/08/2013 1:25 PM | Updated as of 04/08/2013 1:25 PM
MANILA – The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said there is no imminent threat despite the growing tensions in Korea.
Assistant Secretary Raul Hernandez, the DFA spokesman said the situation in South Korea, where about 40,000 Filipinos are based, remain normal.
“The general situation now in Seoul, in South Korea as a whole, is normal, business as usual and calm,” Hernandez said during an interview on ANC’s Headstart.
Henandez said there are no Filipinos yet who have asked to be repatriated by the embassy.
Aside from the Filipinos, there area about 700,000 Chinese nationals, 400,000 Korean-Chinese, 137,000 US nationals, 116,000 Vietnamese and about 60,000 Japanese are in South Korea.
“Nobody is leaving and everybody is calm and they believe that there is no imminent threat as far as the situation there is concerned,” he said.
He said the DFA is continuously monitoring the situation with international agencies.
“The contingency plan is based on intelligence report and we have to do a solid intelligence and assessment of the situation and this is being done by our embassy, in coordination with the UN command, with the South Korean authorities, and also with the US forces. We will not move until we are able to have that solid intelligence report,” he said.
“What we have now is that there is no movement of troops in the border which usually takes place before an attack. That's why all our international partners have told us that as far as they are concerned there is no imminent threat or attack that is brewing in that area,” he explained.
Meanwhile, Hernandez stressed that the embassy is ready to carry out its contingency plan for Filipinos in case violence breaks out.
“They are coordinating very well with community leaders and organizations para paigtinging ang ating contingency plan just in case lumala ang tension. Handa po ang ating embahada, in coordination with the community leaders, and other stakeholders, to bring back our people,” he said.

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