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| China-Japan-Koreas | |
| Norks shell South in fiercest attack in decades | |
| 2010-11-23 | |
The attack follows moves by iron leader Kim Jong-il to make his youngest son heir apparent to the family dynasty. Experts say that for decades the Korean leadership has played a carefully calibrated game of provocations to win concessions from the international community and impress his own military. The risk is that the leadership transition has upset this balance and that events spin out of control. South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, who has pursued a hard line with the reclusive North since taking office nearly three years ago, said a response had to be firm following the attack on Yeonpyeong island, just 120 km (75 miles) west of Seoul. "Houses and mountains are on fire and people are evacuating. You can't see very well because of plumes of smoke," a witness on the island told YTN Television before the shelling ended after about an hour. North Korea said its wealthy neighbor started the fight. "Despite our repeated warnings, South Korea fired dozens of shells from 1 p.m. ... and we've taken strong military action immediately," its KCNA news agency said in a brief statement. South Korea has been conducting military exercises this week but it was not clear whether there had been any drills near the island that could have triggered the incident. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the latest rise in tension represented a "colossal danger." China, the impoverished North's only powerful ally, was careful to avoid taking sides, calling on both Koreas to "do more to contribute to peace." "China hopes that the relevant parties will do more to contribute to peace and stability in the region ... it is imperative now to resume the six-party talks," a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Hong Lei, told reporters. | |
| Posted by:Steve White |