Lee Calls for Calm Response to Disaster
By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter
President Lee Myung-bak called on the people Thursday to calm down and wait and see the results of ongoing efforts to rescue missing sailors and investigate the cause of the sinking of the frigate Cheonan.
Lee's comments came as speculation rages among the public and media as to what caused the 1,200-ton Cheonan to sink. The warship sank last Friday in waters off Baengnyeong Island near the western sea border with North Korea.
Fifty-eight sailors were rescued, but 46 others remain missing. Families of the missing sailors are clinging to the hope that they could be found alive in watertight cabins of the split sections of the vessel lying on the seabed about 45 meters under the surface.
In recent days, rumors of North Korean involvement have emerged as a possible cause of the incident. North Korean mini-submarines were said to have conducted operations near the Northern Limit Line (NLL), the de facto inter-Korean sea border, at the time when the Cheonan and another frigate, Sokcho, were patrolling the area.
Some people raised the possibility that the Cheonan was maneuvering to respond to the North Korean submarines and might have hit a mine or been struck by a torpedo from the subs during the operation.
The Ministry of National Defense has said such moves by North Korean submarines are ``routine'' and have nothing to do with the sinking.
Until a final conclusion is reached, we should wait calmly for the cause of the incident, and that's the way we love our nation,'' Lee said at a meeting with economic policymakers at Cheong Wa Dae.
The President promised that the government would uncover the truth behind the accident.
``As this incident is very sensitive and important, we'll uncover the cause through a thorough and scientific investigation,'' Lee said, adding that how the administration deals with the naval tragedy would affect the country's international credibility.
Lee pledged that his office would not be distracted from its normal duties in other areas despite the naval disaster.
Search and rescue efforts on the seventh day were hampered by stormy weather.
Divers have injected air through a crack in the stern of the 88-meter-long corvette, which is believed to be holding most of the missing sailors.
Rear Adm. Lee Ki-shik at the Joint Chiefs of Staff said divers secured the doors of the bow and stern of the downed ship and would try to enter inside.
Earlier in the day, a fact-finding team involving 60 military officials, investigators, arms researchers and ship experts arrived in Baengnyeong Island to begin investigations to determine the cause of the tragedy.
Defense Minister Kim Tae-young said Wednesday that work to refloat the sunken hull will begin as soon as next week after a floating crane arrives at the scene this weekend. One more crane will arrive days after, according to ministry officials.
Kim said, however, radio contacts between the Cheonan, Sokcho and the 2nd Navy Fleet headquarters in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, would not be made public because of security concerns.