Pres. Lee to Address Nation on Cheonan Sinking

President Lee Myung-bak will issue a public statement Monday morning criticizing North Korea’s sinking of the naval ship Cheonan and announce countermeasures.

A joint investigation team of civilian and military experts said Thursday that it concluded that the North torpedoed the South Korean vessel March 26.

Calling the sinking a “clear military provocation,” the president will express the government’s commitment to take firm countermeasures and demand that Pyongyang take corresponding measures, according to his chief public relations secretary Lee Dong-kwan Sunday.

President Lee also said the government will take stronger countermeasures spanning all scopes if the North resorts to additional provocations, indicating the possibility of military action.

He will host a summit Friday at the presidential office with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, who will attend a trilateral summit of South Korea, Japan and China May 29-30.

yongari@donga.com