The Presidential Spokesperson gave the following briefing this afternoon.

The President is having a series of telephone conversations today with several heads of government at their request in connection with North Korea’s provocative shelling of Yeonpyeongdo (Yeonpyeong Island).

First of all, the President spoke by phone to US President Barack Obama for 30 minutes from 11:30 this morning. Subsequently, the President had a 30-minute telephone conversation with Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan from 12:07 in the afternoon.

Both President Obama and Prime Minister Kan made a positive assessment of the President’s resolute response to the North’s provocation. They also expressed sympathy to the victims of the shelling by the North. The President thanked the two leaders for issuing statements that denounced the provocative act by North Korea and committed support to South Korea.

During the conversation with President Obama, the President expressed his appreciation for releasing the statement in the wee hours of the morning, the earliest one after the provocation. The two heads of state emerged with a united view that the North’s indiscriminate attacks against the territory of the Republic of Korea and its civilians were a choreographed provocation. They also concurred on the need to respond to the provocation in a firmer manner than at any time before. They especially reaffirmed their determination to work closely together for strong, joint countermeasures around the clock.

President Obama explained that the USS George Washington, the US Navy aircraft carrier, would be deployed in the West Sea. He added that the US Government would make an announcement in connection with this immediately after his telephone conversation with the President.

On top of this, President Obama proposed that the two countries conduct joint military exercises when necessary in the future. The two heads of state also saw eye to eye on the necessity of further strengthening sanctions against North Korea if it continues this sort of behavior. They also agreed to continuously send a message to the North to the effect that a genuine change on the part of North Korea is a prerequisite for dialogue.

The President also said in part, “The provocation this time is unprecedented. It was a premeditated provocation and an indiscriminate attack against civilian, which came on the heels of the North’s revelation of a highly enriched uranium program going on in Yongbyon. Whenever the going gets tough, the United States and the Republic of Korea maintain close consultations, in which I have strong confidence.”

For his part, President Obama said to the effect that China has to show a clear-cut attitude toward North Korea. He promised to make a call to his Chinese counterpart to urge China to work together in dealing with the North.

In response, the President said, “First, the North has unveiled its highly enriched uranium program that it had previously denied. Secondly, the North admitted its provocation, as well. Considering this, I expect China to work together with us.”

Meanwhile, in his telephone conversation with Prime Minister Naoto Kan of Japan, the President expressed gratitude for the fact that the Japanese Government condemned North Korea’s provocation right after the incident while supporting the position of the South Korean Government.

Prime Minister Kan said that the Japanese Government was obliged to express its strong stance because North Korea had perpetrated a totally unacceptable artillery shelling yesterday back to back with the recent provocation involving the ROK navy corvette Cheonan. According to him, this series of incidents, which not only included the attack on the Cheonan and the artillery firing but also the enriched uranium program, is only part of definite provocations being committed by Pyongyang. Particularly, the firing this time is not accidental, and this kind of provocation should be stopped. In order to stop it, the international community, especially Korea, the United States and Japan, should cooperate closely with one another.

Regarding China’s role, the Japanese leader said that the Chinese Government, which has considerable influence over North Korea, should demonstrate its resolute stance toward Pyongyang. Tokyo would convey this message to Beijing.

The President and Prime Minister Kan shared the view that the working-level coordination that had already been agreed on by the Governments of Korea, the United States and Japan should be strengthened.