South Korean government, military go into emergency mode

South Korean government branches and the military have been put on high alert following the announcement of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il’s death on Monday.

President Lee Myung-bak called a National Security Council meeting immediately after he was informed of Kim’s death, and held an emergency Cabinet meeting at 3 p.m.

Lee also had a phone conversation with U.S. President Barak Obama regarding the matter.

According to Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson Park Jeong-ha, the two leaders agreed to monitor the situation and work closely together on the issue.

With Kim’s death leaving open possibilities of Pyongyang taking military action, the South’s military has been put on high alert.

The office of the Joint Chief of Staff placed all branches of the armed forces on the second-highest level of alert immediately after the news was announced.

Following the changes in its operational protocol, the military deployed additional RF-4 jets and other reconnaissance equipment to reinforce monitoring of the North’s military.

Under the measures, commanders of battalions and larger units are required to maintain their posts and operate response teams.

Units on and near the border and those based in coastal areas vulnerable to possible North Korean incursions were put on heightened alert.

The JCS is also said to have requested the United States Forces Korea to monitor North Korea with U-2 high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft and spy satellites with greater frequency.

However, no unusual military movement was detected in the North immediately after the announcement.

The JCS said that while there were no unusual movements, North Korean movements were being monitored, with particular attention being paid to possible provocations in the demilitarized zone, areas near the northern limit line in the West Sea and the Joint Security Area in Panmunjeom in Gyeonggi Province.

As such, the South Korean military maintained defense readiness condition, or DEFCON, and Watch Condition, or WATCHCON, at usual levels.

In South Korea DEFCON 4 ― the second-lowest level of readiness ― is the usual level, while WATCHCON 3 maintained under normal conditions.

The country’s police force also went into emergency operations as of 12:30 p.m. According to emergency protocol, commanding officers are required to stay on call at their posts, and riot police and other mobile units are required to remain ready to be deployed.

The police also said that it will cooperate with the military in reinforcing defenses on facilities of national importance.

The emergency measures implemented following the news are not limited to the military and the police forces.

On Monday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade instructed all overseas diplomatic missions to operate under emergency conditions.

The Ministry of Public Administration and Security also issued an order placing all civil servants on level four emergency operations. Under a level four situation, which is the lowest level of alert the ministry can issue, heads of government organizations and management-level officials are prohibited from leaving their place of work. In addition, all civil servants are required to refrain from taking time off work, and at least one person from each unit within various government branches is required to stay at work around the clock.

By Choi He-suk (cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)