By Na Jeong-ju
Staff Reporter
President Lee Myung-bak called for national unity Wednesday to counter Japan's claim to South Korea's easternmost islets of Dokdo and the killing of a South Korean tourist by the North Korean military.
Expressing concerns over a split in the society, Lee reaffirmed that the government will take stern actions against Japan and North Korea.
``Non-partisan and strategic actions are necessary to counter the attempts to cause a rift within our society,'' Lee said at a weekly Cabinet meeting.
Lee said Tokyo's claim to the islets shows it is taking slow but steady steps to turn Dokdo into the site of an international territorial dispute.
``We need to take long-term and strategic countermeasures as far as Dokdo is concerned. We will consolidate our practical control of the islets,'' Lee was quoted as saying by a Cheong Wa Dae spokesman.
On Tuesday, the presidential office accused the Japanese government of spreading false information on Lee's remarks on Dokdo during his meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda last Wednesday. A leading Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun reported Monday that President Lee took an ambiguous posture on South Korea's sovereignty over the islets.
The Japanese government later denied the report was based on fact, but opposition parties stepped up attacks on Lee and his aides.
Chung Sye-kyun, chairman of the largest opposition Democratic Party, said Wednesday Lee's handling of the Dokdo issue still leaves many questions despite denials by the two governments of the Yomiuri report.
``Lee should reflect on his policies regarding Dokdo and North Korea. He should acknowledge his faults if he did anything wrong,'' Chung said at a forum in Seoul.
Ambassador to Japan Kwon Chul-hyun met with Prime Minister Han Seung-soo to map out countermeasures against Tokyo's renewed claim to the islets.
Lee recalled Kwon late Tuesday to protest Japan's description of Dokdo as its territory in a revised teaching manual for middle school teachers, which will be used starting as early as next year.
During his temporary stay in Seoul, Kwon will also meet with Kim Sung-hwan, the chief presidential secretary on foreign and security affairs, and National Assembly Speaker Kim Hyong-o.
During the Cabinet meeting, Lee made it clear that the Mt. Geumgang tour programs will not be resumed unless the questions surrounding the July 11 shooting death of a South Korean female tourist are fully answered through an inter-Korean probe.
``The government's top priority is to safeguard the people and their lives. The Geumgang program should not be resumed unless an inter-Korean team completes a thorough probe into the shooting death and North Korea offers a complete guarantee for the safety of tourists,'' Lee said.