S. Korean Parliament Hears Reports on National Security 　　The South Korean National Assembly, or parliament, held a plenary session on June 16 to hear reports from the defense and unification ministers over national security. 　　In his report to the parliament, Defense Minister Cho Seong-tae pledged that utmost efforts will be made to contain the naval skirmish with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) from developing into a full-scale battle. But he vowed to take stern moves against any aggressive action by DPRK. 　　Cho said the entire armed forces of South Korea are now on alert. 　　An inter-Korean exchange of gunfire happened in the Yellow Sea early June 15, in which a DPRK torpedo boat was sunken and three others seriously damaged while two South Korean military ships were slightly damaged and seven servicemen wounded. 　　The DPRK may be attempting to gain the upper hand in the upcoming general-level meeting between Seoul and Pyongyang and in its approach to the rich fishing ground in the buffer zone, according to Cho. 　　Meanwhile, Unification Minister Lim Dong-won reiterated at the parliament that the government is determined to stick to the engagement policy despite the clash. 　　"There has been no change in the government's intention to continue the engagement efforts with the North on the basis of a firm defense readiness." 　　Lim also said the government will attend the ministerial talks with the DPRK as scheduled and will continue to provide fertilizer assistance to Pyongyang. 　　However, the unification minister added that the government will never tolerate any aggression from the DPRK. 　　The unification minister's report to the parliament was interrupted by shouts and jeers from opposition Grand National Party GNP) lawmakers who are against the Kim Dae-jung government's "sunshine Policy", which seeks reconciliation and cooperation based on separating business from politics. 　　The opposition lawmakers walked out in the middle of the minister's report and dismissed the sunshine policy as a "total failure." They urged the government to stop inter-Korean exchange programs such as Mt. Kumgang tours and the supply of fertilizer to the DPRK. 　　Also on Wednesday, the parliament formed a five-member emergency committee to deal with the Tuesday inter-Korean military clash in the Yellow Sea. 　　However, the parliament failed to adopt the earlier scheduled resolution on national security as the opposition Grand National Party (GNP) lodged a protest against the Kim Dae-jung government's insistence on upholding the "sunshine policy" toward the DPRK.(Xinhua) WorldNews 1999-06-17 Page6 Full Story in Chinese