South Korea has begun a fresh series of live-fire artillery exercises across the country. They are seen as a response to North Korea's shelling of a South Korean island, nearly two weeks ago.

As South Korea began a week of artillery drills across the country, the new defense minister ordered the military to exercise its right of self defense, should another attack be launched by North Korea.

Former Army general Kim Kwan-jin, who took office two days ago, told reporters Monday South Korea's military forces can immediately retaliate, if North Korea provokes first.

Park Syungje, at the Asia Strategy Institute, says the defense minister's statement is meant to make a distinction from the more cautious rules of engagement.

Park says the right-of-self-defense comment should deter North Korea from making additional attacks. He adds that South Korea is not expected to fire too closely to the disputed maritime boundary, known as the Northern Limit Line, during the current drills.

South Korean defense officials, contacted for interviews, would not comment on the precise locations where artillery will be fired into the troubled western waters.

It was in that area, during an artillery exercise by the South on November 23, that North Korea fired shells onto Yeonpyeong island.

On Monday, in Washington, the foreign ministers and other senior diplomats from South Korea and Japan are to meet with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Officials here say the three countries will discuss the North Korean artillery attack and Pyongyang's nuclear programs, including its recently revealed uranium reprocessing operation.

After the November 23 attack on Yeonpyeong, South Korea's government and military faced domestic criticism for their slow and restrained response. The military did fire back artillery but aircraft were not sent to destroy the guns in North Korea which fired on the island.

Most of the 1,500 people living on the island fled to the mainland after the attack.

Monday, South Korea's prime minister vowed the government will do all it can to return life to normal on the battered island. Kim Hwang-Sik has announced $25 million in aid will be dispensed to displaced residents to help them rebuild destroyed homes. He also noted more troops and weaponry are being sent to Yeonpyeong and four other islands on the frontline.

The prime minister says that will allow South Korea to respond firmly to any further military provocation from the North.

Pyongyang has repeatedly taken aggressive action in waters near the Northern Limit Line, which it stresses it does not recognize as the sea border.

In its Sunday evening news broadcast, North Korean television warned the fresh South Korean artillery drills would bring the peninsula even closer to a state of war.

The announcer says such provocative madness is creating an uncontrollable, extreme and unpredictable situation. But she says North Korea, is, remaining cool-headed and in control.

The Yonhap news agency reports a South Korean presidential security panel has recommended that, in wake of the shelling of Yeonpyeong, the number of marines be doubled. The South Korean marines are a key force for the defense of the country's western border islands. The policy suggestions, according to the news service, include halting the reduction of how long those conscripted into the military are required to serve. In South Korea, a period of military service is compulsory for all physically fit men to complete between the ages of 19 and 30.

U.S. President Barack Obama is asking China to send a "clear message" to North Korea, as Japanese and South Korean officials gather in Washington to discuss the crisis on the Korean peninsula.

The diplomatic activity comes as South Korea stages five days of live-fire artillery drills that Pyongyang has denounced as an effort to trigger a war. It was during a similar drill last month that North Korea launched an artillery barrage on a South Korean island, killing four people.

Mr. Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao spoke by telephone as the exercise began Monday morning. A White House spokesman said Mr. Obama urged his counterpart to let Pyongyang know that "its provocations are unacceptable."

Chinese media say President Hu expressed his deep concern about the situation and called for a "cool and rational" response on all sides.

Later Monday, the foreign ministers of Japan and South Korea are to meet Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to discuss last month's artillery attack and North Korea's recent disclosure of a uranium enrichment facility.

The three countries have so far declined China's invitation to a wider meeting that would also include China, Russia and North Korea. They say that to sit down with Pyongyang at this point would reward it for bad behavior.

South Korea's artillery drills were scheduled as a response to the shelling on November 23 of Yeonpyeong Island, which killed four people and wounded 18. North Korea said it launched the barrage because the South was staging an exercise that involved firing into waters claimed by both sides.

South Korean officials declined to say specifically where Monday's drills were taking place. But previously, it warned vessels to stay away from 29 locations including Daechong, another island near the disputed sea border with North Korea. South Korean media said no shells had been fired near the border so far.

Pyongyang has denounced the exercise but has not specifically threatened retaliation. Seoul's new defense minister, retired General Kim Kwan-jin, has vowed a strong military response if the Pyongyang government launches another attack.

The Washington Post newspaper reports in its Monday edition that the United States is moving to strengthen its relationship with Japan and South Korea because of growing frustration with China. It says U.S. officials are reluctantly building what could become an anti-China bloc.

The newspaper says the Obama administration feels that China's failure to condemn North Korea as it develops nuclear weapons and attacks its southern neighbor has encouraged Pyongyang to believe it is free to act with impunity.

Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.

Pakistani officials say two suicide bombers in the northwestern tribal belt have killed at least 50 people and wounded 100 others in an attack on an anti-Taliban committee meeting.

Authorities say Monday's twin blasts happened inside the compound of a top local government official in the Mohmand tribal region. The top political official in the region, Amjad Ali Khan, said the alleged suicide bombers attacked his office in the town of Ghalanai, where where tribal elders and top officials were meeting.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.

The Pakistani army has been fighting insurgents in Mohmand, but has been unable to defeat Taliban and al-Qaida linked groups.

Militant groups have been targeting local tribesman, who have been encouraged by the military to form militias against insurgents.