YEONPYEONG, South Korea: War clouds gathered over the Korean peninsula Sunday as North Korea placed surface-to-surface missiles on launch pads in the Yellow Sea and the United States and South Korea began military drills in the Korean waters. Yonhap news agency said North Korea, whose ailing leader, Kim Jong-il, is preparing to hand over the reins of power to his youngest son, had moved surface-to-air missiles to frontline areas, days after it shelled Yeonpyeong killing four people. The North's official KCNA news agency warned of retaliatory action if its territory is violated. China called for emergency talks, but made clear that the talks would not amount to a resumption of six-party disarmament discussions which North Korea walked out of two years ago and declared dead. South Korea said it would carefully consider China's suggestion. South Korean President Lee Myung-bak had told a visiting Chinese delegation that Beijing, North Korea's only major ally which is traditionally reluctant to criticize the reclusive regime, should do more to help. China, which agreed with South Korea that the situation was “worrisome”, suggested the emergency talks for December among North and South Korea, host China, the United States, Japan and Russia. It did not say whether Pyongyang had agreed to join. Japan was non-committal. “We want to respond cautiously while cooperating closely with South Korea and the United States,” Kyodo news agency quoted Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Tetsuro Fukuyama as saying. Beijing has long-standing bonds with Pyongyang, and has sought to shield its small, poor neighbor from a backlash that China fears could draw an even more ferocious reaction from North Korea and dangerously destabilize the region. Critics in Washington and other capitals say China's approach amounts to coddling a dangerous nuclear-armed state. South Korean authorities told journalists to leave the island because the situation was “bad”. Many residents evacuated earlier said they did not want to return. In Seoul, despite the fears of war, life carried on normally for the city's more than 10 million residents, with downtown shopping districts jammed with people braving the freezing temperatures, and cafes decked with Christmas decorations doing brisk business. “I am worried, but not that worried that I need to stay at home,” said Eunhye Kim, an usher showing people from a packed theater in the capital. “They don't really want to make war ...there's no gain for either side.”
