A military command center will be established to prepare for any artillery attack or marine invasion that could occur without warning on South Korea’s islands in the Yellow Sea near the inter-Korean maritime border.

The ministry informed President Lee Myung-bak of the plans for the military command as part of its blueprint for the coming year.

A senior ministry official said that the Northwestern Maritime Command would jointly deploy land, sea, and air forces as well as the marines. The organization and size would be equal to or larger than the military unit of “division.”

The command will be headed by a two-star or three-star general from the Navy or the Marines. The chief of the command will be delegated with operational control in order to immediately respond to provocations by North Korea.

In addition, the ministry says it will complete beefing up defenses in the northwestern islands by deploying core forces for monitoring, artillery firing and air defense purposes.