Lee asks N. Korean apology, suspends trade

SEOUL, May 24 (UPI) -- South Korean President Lee Myung-bak Monday sought an apology from North Korea, accused of sinking a South Korean navy ship, and suspended trade with the North.

Addressing the nation, Lee called the March 26 sinking of the 1,200-ton Cheonan in the Yellow Sea a "military provocation," warning Seoul will exercise its right of self-defense if another provocation occurs.

Lee urged North Korea to "apologize immediately to (South Korea) and the international community" and immediately "punish those" involved in the ship's sinking.

A team of experts from the United States, Britain, Australia, Sweden and South Korea concluded last week the Cheonan was torpedoed by a North Korean submarine, killing 46 of the sailors aboard.

Lee said North Korea had once again "violently shattered our peace" in the Korean Peninsula.

The sinking of the Cheonan, he said, "constitutes a military provocation."

"If our territorial waters, airspace or territory are violated, we will immediately exercise our right of self-defense," he said.

In his address, the text of which was reported by the Yonhap news agency, Lee said: "We have always tolerated North Korea's brutality, time and again" because of the South's "longing for peace" on the peninsula.

"But now things are different," he said. "North Korea will pay a price corresponding to its provocative acts."

Lee said South Korea will not allow North Korean ships to use shipping lanes "under our control."

"Trade and exchanges between (South Korea) and North Korea will also be suspended," he said.

South Korea "will continue to provide assistance for infants and children," Lee said.