President Lee Myung-bak instructed the Cabinet Tuesday to be more aggressive with a sense of emergency in taking steps to cope with the global economic crisis, saying he sees little action despite many discussions on how to handle the situation.

“As we have feared from the beginning of the year, this crisis could last for a long time,” Lee said during a Cabinet meeting, according to spokesman Park Jeong-ha. “Though we have held emergency meetings ... government measures are not seen in action.

"We have to take action on emergency countermeasures in a more aggressive manner.”

Lee said extraordinary measures are needed as exports and investment are in the doldrums and growth is shrinking. He also asked ministers to provide greater support for businesses by paying more heed to difficulties they suffer and trying to resolve them.

“Political parties, regardless of whether they are ruling or opposition parties, should provide encouragement for companies and help them make investments without concern if we are to overcome the crisis,” Lee said. “The government should take the lead in these efforts.” (Yonhap News)