President Lee Myung-bak instructed his Cabinet Tuesday to fortify the five western border islands, including Yeonpyeong attacked by North Korea last month, and step up efforts to improve the living conditions of residents there, his office Cheong Wa Dae said.
"Government ministries should push for the gradual fortification (of the islands)," Lee was quoted as saying in a weekly Cabinet meeting. "The ministries should also cooperate in creating jobs and other conditions for residents to continue to stay there."
Lee's comments came as worries grow that the five islands near the Yellow Sea border may become "ghost lands." A growing number of residents there, mostly fishermen and their families and small restaurant owners, have been
calling for government measures to help them move to other areas where there are no direct threats of North Korean military attacks.
On Nov. 23, the North launched an artillery attack on Yeonpyeong Island, which hosts a Marine Corps base, killing two soldiers and two construction workers.
The government announced a decision Monday to spend 30 billion won (US$26 million) to support the resettlement of displaced residents of the island battered by the artillery shells and finance the reconstruction of destroyed
facilities.