Park orders military to maintain full readiness against NK provocations

President Park Geun-hye on Monday ordered her military to maintain a full readiness posture to ensure that any North Korean provocation will lead to the "self-destruction" of the communist regime.

During a meeting with her senior secretaries, the commander-in-chief also instructed her government to craft "effective" measures against the North's evolving nuclear and missile capabilities.

Park has recently cranked up her rhetoric against Pyongyang as the reclusive state has continued to engage in provocative acts, including last week's launch of a submarine-launched ballistic missile, which was largely seen as a success.

President Park Geun-hye speaks during a meeting with her senior secretaries at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae on Aug. 29(Yonhap)

"I call on you to maintain a robust posture to retaliate ... to make sure that any attempt by the North at engaging in any form of provocations will lead to the self-destruction of the North Korean regime," she said.

Berating North Korean leader Kim Jong-un for ignoring his people's economic hardships while focusing on his nuclear program, the president stressed that the North Korean human rights issue is a humanitarian matter that can no longer be put on the back burner.

"(The improvement of the human rights in the North) is the cornerstone for us to open an era of peaceful reunification," she said. "The government will send out to the North Korean people messages of hope for freedom and (human) dignity." (Yonhap)