South Korean President Lee Myung-bak gathered his national security leaders for strategic talks as troops braced for possible DPRK retaliation a day after conducting artillery drills.

Lee approved a plan to shore up the national crisis management center and divide it into three departments for more efficient emergency responses in the future. On Monday, South Korea staged a live fire drill in waters near its western border island of Yeonpyeong, which was shelled by the DPRK last month for conducting a similar military drill. The DPRK has so far backed off threats to strike the South Korea again. Top officials in South Korea defend their decision to carry out the drills and say the military is prepared for any future DPRK provocation.

Kim Sung-Hwan, South Korean Foreign Minister, said, "Casualties are continuously occurring on our side, and it is a little difficult for us to just persevere it.This exercise completes the planned exercises South Korea was planning to undertake this year. We did not expand the size of exercise."

"We will prevent additional provocation from DPRK by maintaining thorough military preparedness, and when it provokes, we will firmly punish DPRK and sever the link of its series of provocations." im Sung-Hwan said.

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