S. Korea and U.S. military drill pushing toward war, N. Korea says
- North Korea apparently targets key sites on Yeonpyeong Island, a South Korean lawmaker says
- The drill is a "reckless plan" by "trigger-happy elements," the North says
- The exercise is to start Sunday in the Yellow Sea
- South Korea says it still hasn't picked a defense minister
Seoul, South Korea (CNN) -- South Korea and the United States are recklessly pushing the Korean peninsula "closer to the brink of war" by scheduling a joint military drill for this weekend, North Korean state media said Friday.
"The situation on the Korean peninsula is inching closer to the brink of war due to the reckless plan of those trigger-happy elements to stage again the war exercises targeted against [North Korea] in wake of the grave military provocation they perpetrated against the territorial waters of [the North Korean] side in the West Sea ... " said the North's KCNA news agency.
The West Sea is the part of the Yellow Sea that's closest to the Koreas, and it was the scene of Tuesday's shelling of a South Korean island by North Korea. The attack on Yeonpyeong Island killed four South Koreans and injured 15 others.
North Korea said the South provoked the attack because shells from a South Korean military drill landed in the North's waters. South Korea was holding its annual Hoguk military drill when the North started its shelling.
"The army and people of [North Korea] are now greatly enraged at the provocation of the puppet group, while getting fully ready to give a shower of dreadful fire and blow up the bulwark of the enemies if they dare to encroach again upon [North Korea's] dignity and sovereignty even in the least," KCNA said Friday.
"The group should not run amuck, clearly understanding the will and mettle of the highly alerted army and people of [North Korea] to wipe out the enemies."
The United States has condemned the attack on Yeonpyeong Island and affirmed its military commitments to South Korea.
South Korean and U.S. forces plan to drill in the Yellow Sea from Sunday till Wednesday. The U.S. is sending the aircraft carrier USS George Washington to the drill, which is being billed as defensive in nature. The exercises were planned months ago, but are meant to underscore strong ties between South Korea and the United States, defense officials from both countries have said.
On Friday, the sound of gunfire from suspected military exercises could be heard coming from North Korea, South Korean defense officials said. The gunfire did not appear to be aimed at Yeonpyeong Island, which is just off the coast of North Korea, though South Koreans on the island heard approximately 20 shots.
The island has been almost entirely evacuated of its population of about 1,300. About 30 residents were left, Yonhap said. Most residents had fled to the South Korean mainland. About 100 soldiers and workers also were on the island, doing cleanup and repairs.
The North appeared to have carefully targeted Tuesday's attack, a key South Korean lawmaker said Friday after a visit to Yeonpyeong Island.
"My hunch is that North Korea was picking and choosing its aiming point. They are very focused. They attacked gas station, helicopter pad and command and control sites, and water tanks. Everything that is directly related to military operations, they have completely smashed," said South Korean Congresswoman Song Young-sun, an influential member of the National Assembly's Defense Committee.
Asked why North Korea might have attacked, she said:
"I think they are doing this training for dual purposes. One is for South Korea: They are arbitrarily suggesting the different maritime border line from our Northern Limit Line. They are trying to verify what they demand, so they are doing exercises and training.
"Two, what Kim Jong Un wants to demonstrate is his influence and his exertion of power, because he needs in a very speedy time to prove within the next couple of years that he is strong and qualified to succeed."
The South has scrambled in the wake of Tuesday's shelling.
Its defense minister resigned Thursday. Kim Tae-young, a former general, came under heavy criticism after the March sinking of the South Korean war ship Cheonan and again after North Korea struck Yeonpyeong Island on Tuesday.
South Korea's defense ministry announced Kim's successor on Friday morning, then quickly waffled, saying that the announcement had to come from the president's office. The president's office said that the announcement should come from the defense ministry.
The ministry had earlier announced the appointment of Lee Hee Won, a presidential security aide, as Kim's successor.
Hours later, South Korea said that it was still screening candidates for the position of defense minister.
"No decision has been made as of 2:30 p.m. Seoul time Friday," according to Senior Secretary for Public Relations Hong Sang-Pyo.
The miscommunication followed South Korean lawmakers' criticism that South Korean forces were unprepared for the shelling of Yeonpyeong Island and the sinking of the Cheonan.
Kim actually submitted his resignation May 1, after the Cheonan sinking, but it was not accepted until Thursday because of the Cheonan aftermath and other military-related issues, the administration of President Lee Myung-bak said.
The Cheonan sinking sparked a public uproar, with many saying that it should not have been possible for North Korea to have damaged South Korea's military, which is much more high-tech.
Lee also drew criticism for his first statements after the Yeonpyeong bombardment, in which he asked for a stern response but added that de-escalatory measures also had to be taken. Later that same day, Lee spoke to the military and urged heavy retaliation. It was unclear who advised Lee on his first message, but on Wednesday, speaking to a lawmakers' committee, Kim said the president's first instruction was to stop the fire from spreading.
On Friday, South Korea's Yonhap news agency said that the country was expected to increase defense spending. Citing government officials, Yonhap said approximately 1.4 trillion won ($1.23 billion USD) has already been earmarked to buy weapons such as K-9 self-propelled howitzers and F-15K fighter jets next year.
South Korea used K-9 howitzers in response to North Korea's shelling and has deployed F-15Ks to Yeonpyeong Island. Some of the howitzers were damaged in the attack.
South Korea said Thursday that it will strengthen and supplement its rules of engagement in the Yellow Sea, following the attack on Yeonpyeong. South Korean marine forces based in five islands near North Korea and the disputed Northern Limit Line also will be reinforced, a government spokesman said.
The tense maritime border between the two Koreas has become the major military flash point on the Korean peninsula in recent years.
The Yeonpyeong attack was the first direct artillery assault on South Korea since the Korean War ended in 1953.
Andrew Salmon contributed to this report for CNN.
http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/11/26/koreas.crisis/index.html?hpt=T1
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