President Park Geun-hye on Friday approved a plan to institute the standing committee and secretariat of the National Security Council as part of efforts to better handle growing uncertainties in North Korea and the region.

The NSC standing committee to be chaired by the National Security Office chief will convene once a week to coordinate foreign affairs and security policies and make policy recommendations to the president, Cheong Wa Dae said.

The secretariat is to be led by the first deputy chief of the NSO, which will be newly created in the presidential office. It is designed to offer administrative support for the operation of the NSC committee and secretariat.

“Recently, the danger in the security landscape of the Korean Peninsula has increased. Along with this, there is a substantial change in the strategic environment of East Asia amid intensifying conflicts among neighboring states surrounding the peninsula,” Ju Chul-ki, senior presidential secretary for foreign affairs and defense, told reporters.

“The plan is designed to proactively and effectively deal with security situations on the peninsula and beyond.”

The plan requires a revision of the law governing the management of the NSC. Ju said the government would consult with the National Assembly for the amendment of the NSC law.

The recent execution of Jang Song-thaek, the uncle of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, and China’s unilateral demarcation of an air defense zone have raised the need to bolster Seoul’s security control mechanism.

China and Japan also have recently created their own national security institutions amid their stepped-up push to bolster their maritime security clout in the region.

By Song Sang-ho (sshluck@heraldcorp.com)