North Korea on Saturday denied that it sank a South Korean naval vessel near their disputed sea border late last month. There has been growing speculation in the South that the ship had been hit by a North Korean torpedo, killing 46 sailors and raising fears it could trigger conflict on the divided peninsula.
The North's KCNA news agency accused the conservative government in Seoul of trying to foist blame on its reclusive neighbour to boost sagging support ahead of local elections in the South in June. "The puppet military warmongers, right-wing conservative politicians and the group of other traitors in South Korea are now foolishly seeking to link the accident with the north at any cost," the North's KCNA news agency quoted an unnamed military commentator as saying.
"Another sinister aim sought by the puppet regime in floating the ... story is to justify the persistent and anachronistic policy towards the DPRK (North Korea) and shirk the blame for having driven the inter-Korean relations to the worst crisis."
South Korea, which has already brought some of the wreck to the surface, has said the blast that sank the vessel was caused by an external explosion. Investigators from several countries, including the United States, are trying to determine what caused the 1,200-tonne Cheonan to split in half and plunge some 45 metres (148 feet). South Korea's defence minister said this month it may have been hit by a torpedo, immediately thrusting suspicion on the North.
Local media has pinned the blame on North Korea in the absence of any other likely reasons, though official statements have been far more circumspect. Few expect the South, worried about hurting its own economy in the midst of recovery, to risk taking military action against the North if investigations show Pyongyang sank the ship. It is a delicate time for President Lee Myung-bak, whose relatively high ratings in opinion polls have dipped slightly following the sinking.
His defence minister and the military have come under some criticism for being slow over their handling of the issue. Lee wants a strong showing in the June elections to give him the political muscle he needs to push through more reforms, which have been floundering in an unruly parliament, even though it is dominated by his ruling party.