South Korean president urges North Korea to abandon nukes

South Korean President Park Geun-hye urged North Korea on Tuesday to abandon its nuclear weapons and take the path to change, saying that is the only way to ensure its survival.Park made the remarks in a speech commemorating the victims who died in North Korea’s sinking of the South Korean warship Cheonan exactly three years ago.“As we mark the third anniversary of the Cheonan (sinking), I strongly urge North Korea to change,” Park said at a memorial service held at the national cemetery in the central city of Daejeon.“North Korea must immediately abandon its thoughts that nuclear weapons will protect its regime,” she said. “The only way North Korea will survive is if it voluntarily lays down its nuclear weapons, missiles, provocations and threats, and transforms into a responsible member of the international community.”The Cheonan sinking killed all 46 Navy sailors on board and sharply escalated tensions on the Korean Peninsula. A senior Navy diver also died a few days after the attack during underwater search operations. The victims have been buried at the national cemetery in Daejeon.Tensions have been running high again on the peninsula in recent weeks due to North Korea’s repeated threats to wage war in anger over new UN sanctions for its latest nuclear test and last week’s joint military exercises between South Korea and the United States.