Posted on 05/02/2010 12:56:11 AM PDT by ErnstStavroBlofeld
Seoul's defence minister on Sunday vowed retaliation over the sinking of a South Korean warship which killed 46 sailors near the disputed sea border with North Korea last month.
"Those responsible for killing our soldiers must pay the price," Defence Minister Kim Tae-Young told a KBS television programme aired nationwide on Sunday.
"Retaliation -- in whatever form it is -- must be done."
It echoed South Korean Navy chief Admiral Kim Sung-Chan's reprisal pledge during Thursday's mass funeral for the sailors, attended by President Lee Myung-Bak.
South Korea has not openly blamed its communist neighbour for the blast which tore apart the 1,200-tonne corvette Cheonan in the Yellow Sea on March 26.
But tensions between Pyongyang and Seoul have been simmering since the sinking, with suspicions growing that the North might have been behind the incident. The North denies involvement.
Defence Minister Kim told the KBS show on Sunday that tiny "slivers of aluminium" collected from where the ship went down were being examined to see if they came from weapons used to sink the ship.
Kim has said a heavy torpedo was among the likeliest causes of the sinking. However, he cautioned that the aluminium pieces, three millimetres (0.12 inches) in size, were not yet treated as "decisive" evidence, adding the probe should clarify if they belong to the vessel or something else.
Searchers are scouring the seabed for any other clues that could confirm whether the Cheonan was attacked.
The area was the scene of deadly naval clashes in 1999 and 2002, and of a firefight last November which set a North Korean patrol boat ablaze.
The sinking of the warship has effectively put a brake on diplomatic efforts aimed at reviving six-nation nuclear disarmament talks on North Korea.
(Excerpt) Read more at hindustantimes.com ...
Well, they don’t sound like sniveling wimps— like our leaders.
I wonder what NK and China would think if SK started making Nukes.
Hmm..
I don’t know what to think anymore, except I think with Obama at the helm, everyone will have nukes but us.
The world is a much less safe with Obama as president.
Well they can start by not giving the North any food or fuel.
“Stern diplomatic message will follow!!”
Bad move.
Locate NK sub, sink it, shutup.
That would be
sonar, sink, shutup.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.